Cellphone Manners
The basic tenet of good manners is to make the people around you feel comfortable. That is why it is always bad manners to point social mistakes out to people.
But seeing that this is a blog, and not a dinner party I’m going to share some of my gripes. Particularly around cell phone usage. Hold me back…
First, and this is important: There is no rule that you must be available at all times.
• It is bad manners to take a call when you’re in the middle of a conversation with someone else. Your phone has a call back function and that is precisely what you should do. Once you’ve finished your current conversation. Unless your companion gives you the go ahead, or if you’ve told them you’re waiting for a call, jumping up in the middle of dinner/ a meeting/ a drink to take a call is rude. Full stop.
• This also counts for smses. Nonchalantly typing away at an sms while you’re “uh-huh-ing” and “ah-ing” is bad manners. If you really have to, at least say: “excuse me, this is important” and send the text and put your phone away! The person who has gone through the trouble to be with you in person takes precedence.
• If someone doesn’t answer his/her phone, don’t call them over and over again unless it is a huge emergency. If a person is otherwise occupied, respect that and leave a message or send a text. Seeing that I have 20 missed calls when I come out of a movie is enough to make me think someone has died. Not okay.
• “Call me” is not an acceptable text. Give some information and leave it up to the caller whether or not they’d want to call you. Just because you have airtime and thumbs doesn’t mean you can run the world from your phone like a crackpot dictator.
Or maybe I’m just making excuses because I hate talking on my phone. What do you think?
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