In our formative years, we were all taught to consistently use "please", "thank you", and "you're welcome". But have you noticed lately that the response given to any heartfelt "thank you" these days has automatically become "no problem"?
The connotations of the two responses are quite different. "You're welcome" denotes a complete willingness to provide advice, counsel or service not just at this instance, but at anytime in the future. If one is ever able to help someone out in this manner, receiving a "thank you" in return not only feels good, but makes one want to act similarly again sometime. "You're welcome" provides that direct message clearly and succinctly.
On the other hand, hearing the response "no problem" infers that, hey, you know what? That favor that you asked me for could have been a problem, so be careful in asking me for something similar again. Saying that a task was "no problem" only more closely associates that task with indeed being a potential problem.
Maybe it would be easier to respond to "thank you" with "happy to do it"-- a phrase whose meaning cannot be misinterpreted.
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