We removed every instance of "please" from our interfaces. Every button that said "Please click here" became "Click here." Every form that begged "Please enter your email" became "Enter your email." The change was immediate and obvious.

Users moved faster. Support tickets dropped. Completion rates increased by 8%. We realized something fundamental: politeness in UI is theatrical performance masquerading as respect.

1. Computers Are Tools, Not People

When you ask a hammer to drive a nail, you strike it. You do this with force. You expect results. The hammer provides utility through function, through doing its job reliably when called upon. It serves you best by working, immediately and completely.

Software is the same. A button exists to be pressed. A form exists to collect data. These are transactions of utility. Adding "please" to these interactions is like saying "please" to a door handle before turning it. The handle serves you by turning. The software serves you by functioning.

The politeness ritual implies the interface might refuse you. This creates uncertainty. Uncertainty in UI is friction. Friction kills momentum. We design for momentum.

2. Directness Shows Confidence

"Please submit your payment" implies the system is asking for permission. "Submit payment" states a function. The first version positions the software as a subordinate requesting a favor. The second version positions it as a capable system executing a task.

Users trust confident interfaces. When you design with hedging language, you broadcast doubt. Every "please" is a micro-apology. Every micro-apology communicates that the system might fail, might be wrong, might waste your time. This is the opposite of trust-building.

Compare these two button labels:

[Please confirm your subscription]
vs.
[Confirm subscription]

The second version takes 3 fewer characters and 100% more authority. It tells the user exactly what happens when they click. The first version begs them to participate in the basic functionality of the system.

3. Respect Through Clarity, Never Through Theater

Real respect for users manifests in clear, unambiguous communication. We respect users by telling them exactly what will happen when they interact with our interface. We respect their time by keeping copy minimal. We respect their intelligence by assuming they understand basic interactions.

"Please wait while we process your request" becomes "Processing your request." The information density is identical. The courtesy theater is removed. The user gets the same essential message with 40% fewer characters to parse.

This applies to error messages as well. Compare:

"Please enter a valid email address"
vs.
"Enter a valid email address"

Both communicate the same requirement. The second version does it cleaner. When a user makes an error, they want to fix it immediately. Extra words slow them down. Speed is respect.

4. The Cost of Needless Words

Every word in an interface has a cost. Users must read it, process it, and determine if it contains actionable information. "Please" is a dead word. It contains zero information. It exists purely for social nicety.

In conversation between humans, "please" serves a function. It signals deference, softens requests, maintains social harmony. These are valuable interactions in complex human relationships. But a user and an interface already have a simple relationship: the user commands, the interface executes.

Loading "please" into this relationship adds nothing. It slows reading speed. It increases translation complexity for non-native English speakers. It bloats interfaces on small screens. Every "please" is a micro-tax on user attention.

5. When Politeness Becomes Patronizing

The worst offenders are interfaces that overuse politeness. Banking apps that say "Please wait" every 3 seconds. Forms that beg "Please provide" for every single field. These patterns communicate weakness, insecurity, and condescension.

The subtext becomes: "We know this interface is tedious. We know you're frustrated. We're trying to soften the blow by being polite about it." This is patronizing. It acknowledges the problem while refusing to fix it.

The alternative is to fix the root issue. Make the interface fast. Make it clear. Make it so good that politeness becomes irrelevant because the user gets what they want immediately.