Acceptable reasons to not respond to a text/phone call/email
Originally published 4/5/2018 on Wordpress
There are a few things that drive me absolutely crazy and people not responding to texts, emails, phone calls are at the top of my list this week. Telemarketers and people on your do not call list not included - it is always okay to hang up on or not respond to their messages. Today in 2018, there are so many modes of communication, yet some people either don't or won't respond. I actually think its rude and absolutely bad manners. I know our parents taught us better.
This is my list of acceptable reasons to not respond to a message
1- You just lost all your fingers in a fourth of July fireworks explosion. Random? This actually happens a lot- ask any trauma surgeon.
2- Your cell phone, computer and land line phone have all been lost or confiscated by the FBI, CIA, ISIS, KGB? Or distroyed in above explosion. Could happen I guess
3- You are the leader of the free world and in the middle of a state of the union address or press conference or threat of war with North Korea. This is a weak excuse as even The Donald finds time to tweet at night
4- You are a cardiac or brain surgeon and literally holding these important organs in your hands. Okay I will accept any type of doctor so long as you are in the middle of saving a life.
5- You are on a plane with no wifi. Kinda rare today. But I expect a call back as soon as you land
6- You are anywhere with no wifi or reception. A cave. Mars. Under a rock. Yet I just saw a Facebook and/or instagram post from you - ummm?
7- You are in the hospital. Acceptable only if you are there as a patient and only if you are in a coma or hooked up to a ventilator
8- You are dead. This is the only real acceptable reason. Caution- don't do this to prove a point!!!
Any other reason is totally frivolous, unacceptable and just plain rude!
And just so you know, I'm not a total Diva. I do not need an immediate response. If I send a message during normal business hours, then I expect a response that day- within 3-6 hours I think is acceptable. If I send a message after 9pm, then it is reasonable to expect a response the next day as some people go to sleep early. And I do not need a long drawn out response. A response could be a simple "sorry can't talk now, catch up later" or "I'm fine talk later" or just a simple answer to a question that was posed in the message. Apple makes it so easy where you can send a thumbs up/down, love, laugh, exclaim or question response to a text message- you just press the icon- 2 seconds tops.
When you don't respond, my assumption is that you either have no respect for me or you could care less why I called or you believe you are so much more important than I am. It all boils down to simple etiquette which will lead to your loosing friends or if in business situation, you could definitely loose clients.
Imagine someone standing in front of you talking and you just stare at them without saying anything - wierd and rude right?
So next time, a message comes in, please do look at it and respond. Consider the feelings of the person on the other side.
Does this bother you as much as it bothers me?
Do you agree with my list?
Do you have other acceptable reasons that I missed?
Please leave your comments below.