Most email messages end with a signature block that includes the sender’s name, title, contact information, and sometimes an organizational logo.
Many people also add a quote.
Sometimes the quote is inspirational.
It’s better to give than to receive. Especially advice.
—Mark Twain
Sometimes the quote is motivational.
Sometimes… not so much.
If something’s hard to do, then it’s not worth doing.
—Homer Simpson
Email signatures offer a small but overlooked opportunity to use humor.
One approach is the fake historical quote, a simple form of wordplay humor.
For example:
The problem with quotes on the Internet is that you can never be certain they’re authentic.
—Abraham Lincoln
Or a more modern variation:
I wanted to write a short email, but ChatGPT wouldn’t cooperate.
—Mark Twain
A playful quote at the bottom of an email does something subtle but important: it humanizes the sender.
Of course, your signature should reflect your audience. A middle school teacher’s sign-off will look very different from a college professor’s or a corporate manager’s.
In many virtual classrooms, email becomes the primary way students communicate with instructors. I want my students to feel like I have an open-door email policy, even if the door is digital.
A small touch of humor can help.
It lowers the barrier to communication and reminds students there’s a real person on the other side of the screen.
Sometimes the easiest way to open the door is with a smile at the bottom of an email.
