You Had Me At The Proper Use Of "You're"

We get it, you slept through several classes in High School. So did most of us. But what happened back in the days of gold stars and nap time when we were learning the basics? The problem is that a vast majority of this generation struggles with elementary level contractions and punctuation.

Whether it's on various social media platforms or in simple text messages, I don't think we realize how incredibly stupid it comes across as. So grab your “blankey” and let me take you back to elementary school.

I would like to give the simplest, dummy-proof lesson on contractions, for your sake. Next time you're tweeting or changing your Facebook status, SOUND IT OUT. “You're” means YOU ARE. Any time the words “you are” fit in your sentence, you can replace it with “you're.” The same goes for the contractions “doesn't” and “can't.” Example: “You're contraction-ally challenged.” Take that in, let it marinate a bit, and let's move on.

Now the word “your” is the possessive form of you, it reflects ownership of something. Example: “Read your Elite Daily articles every morning.” The word “your” will never be followed by the words "the," "a" or "an."

So keep that in mind next time you're feeling bold in the contraction department. And don't even get me started on “to, too and two.” That we will save for another article. Let's start with one thing at a time.

So now I'd like to hope that you will no longer confuse “you're” and “your” after this lesson, which brings me to the entire point of this article. Since when did it become socially acceptable to be so ignorant? It is incredibly unattractive to confuse something so basic. It has become so overwhelmingly bad that the title of this article, “You Had Me at the Proper Use of You're,” is sadly VERY true.

As if the dating world wasn't already bad enough, we now have people adding “doesn't understand contractions,” to their list of qualities of the un-dateable. You want me to trust you with my heart, my finances and my reputation, and you cannot understand elementary school basics? Not a chance, keep it moving. Honestly, after being familiar with this, would you date one of these repeat offenders? I think not.

Not only is this undesirable in the dating world, but what about in this downward-spiraling economy where jobs are as scarce as an unfiltered Instagram selfie? Forget your college degree, do you think a potential employer is even going to give you a call back if you cannot get a simple contraction correct on your resume?

If you're making this error that frequently, trust me you're going to slip up when it really counts. Now that you are fully aware of this commonly made mistake, you have now graduated from elementary school and can trade that “blankey” in for some good old common sense.

So remember, next time you want to write a caption for that tacky “gym flow” picture taken in the bathroom mirror at the gym, or update your Facebook status about your failing relationship that no one cares about, PLEASE make sure you have your contractions written correctly.

Cheryl Gensinger Photo Credit: The Paper Wall