due regard for the
feelings, wishes, rights
July is Cellular Phone Courtesy Month. Here are some
bones tips for mobile or cell phone etiquette:
1. Don't answer your mobile phone / cell phone when you're conversing with others one-on-one. Don't put the other person on the line on hold to answer another call, either. Don't text others when you're in face-to-face company. Answering your mobile or cell phone and texting says to the person with whom you're in person-to-person conversation, "You are not as important as the other person who is calling or texting me right now."
2. Maintain a normal tone of voice while speaking into your mobile phone / cell phone. Shouting into it is like a hearing person shouting to a deaf person. It's unnecessary and rude. Shouting to a deaf person will not help him or her hear you. Shouting into your mobile or cell phone is like an English-speaking person shouting to a Russian-speaking person. Shouting won't help a Russian comprehend English if he or she has never learned it.
3. Never argue, dispute, bicker, squabble, fight, wrangle, feud, have words, cross swords, lock horns or be at each other's throats (I borrowed these from Thesaurus) in voice calls, voice mails or text messages. If you must participate in any of these types of exchanges in a mobile or cell phone conversation, always do so alone in a secluded, yea, private setting.
4. When others are at your dining table, it doesn't matter if it's fast food or a seven-course meal-- don't even think of putting your mobile or cell phone on the table. Silence it (that includes a blue tooth!) and put it away out of sight.
Expecting an overseas call from the governor of Hawai'i? Announce to your dining companion(s) to hang loose, that you're expecting the governor's call, and that you will be leaving the table to yak in secluded privacy with someone more important than your dinner companions are.
5. Anywhere your undivided attention and others' is expected, silence your mobile or cell phone and put it away out of sight. That includes, for example, the church, an auditorium, the library, the funeral home, the doctor's office, in the line at Immigration, at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, or at Disneyland. Give your undivided attention to those with you, who expect your attention.
6. In case of an emergency, callers will get in touch with you soon enough. This courtesy goes both ways. Choose not to be offended when the recipient of your mobile or cell phone call or text does not answer or respond immediately. Appreciate their cell phone courtesy.
7. Never, ever text while driving. Never. Always pull your vehicle to the side of the road or into a parking lot or wait until you reach your destination to type a text message reply.
I told my husband the other day, "You know, if there's a young person today who has a vision to ever be president-- even if it's of the PTA-- he or she probably should never text, never Facebook, never tweet, never Instagram, never, ever e-mail, and maybe not even blog." Courteous cell phone choices can never come back to haunt you.