Shanli Liu shares three comebacks for texts and comments. "That's reaching" dismisses desperate arguments. "That's disappointing" works best when you don't reply further, letting it sit. "Imagine being..." forces someone to picture themselves saying it.
3 quick comebacks when you can't think of anything to say. Number 1, that's reaching. That's reaching. It immediately conveys that whatever they just said was beneath you and desperate. Number 2, that's disappointing. That's disappointing. This one is one of my favorites because you can apply it to just about anything, especially over text or email. Whenever you say that's disappointing, whatever they say next, don't respond to it. It's going to live in their head rent-free. And number 3, this one's not for everybody, but you might like it. Begin your sentence with "imagine being." Imagine being the person who's proud of that comment. Imagine being the person who thinks that's funny. Whenever you say "imagine being," it is just a reflection back onto them that's going to get in their head. So try that and follow me.
