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R U RUDE?
Seems as though everyone has something they consider rude. To some, it's something someone says. To others, it's something someone did. Or maybe it's what wasn't said or what wasn't done. Happens all the time.
Here’s my personal top 10 rudes:
1. Not returning a phone call or having it returned on your behalf. The ABSOLUTE king of rudes. Certainly we all get a lot of calls. (In most cases that's a good thing. Think of what would happen if your phone never rang.) But when someone asks for a return phone call and it's ignored, that is RUDE! OK, OK, there are folks I don't relish talking with, too. But I have the call returned on my behalf and handled that way. If it's someone I don't want to hear from again and rather they stop calling, I can nicely tell them that. Who can blame them for continuing to call when we haven't made our feelings known?
And if your voice mail message says, "Please leave a message and I'll return your call" and you don't, know what that makes you? A big fat fibber! If you're not planning on returning some calls, then leave the part off that says you will return the call. Or tell the truth: "I may or may not return your call!"
2. Gum chewing on the phone. Or having anything else in your mouth but your tongue at this time. (Oh yeah, chewing gum in a face-to-face sales situation as well.) Social gum chewing is bad enough. Chewing gum or chomping on candy while on a business call is RUDE.
3. Not sending thank you notes. When did we stop doing this? Seems as though most folks don't let people know a gift was received. A hand written thank you note is always appreciated. By the way, form thank you notes are RUDE as well. If you are going to send a thank you note, jot it down on a note card - handwritten - and mail it. It will be most appreciated. Don't have good handwriting? That's ok; just keep it short. They'll see the words "thank you." (Email thank you's are LAZY, but at least acceptable.)
4. Not returning an email. How easy can that be? DUH? Just hit reply and make a comment. Again, I cannot understand ignoring an email. True, email, like voice mail, was not made for entire conversations, but was created to get a yes or no or confirm something one way or the other. At least our email doesn't shout out, "Please email me and I will return your email."
5. Taking a cell phone call at a social event or restaurant and not removing yourself to a private area. NO ONE, I repeat, NO ONE is interested in your private call. Letting your cell phone ring or taking a call in a business setting is not only RUDE, but probably will lose the business for you. I love my cell phone. Use it a lot. But when I get a call, I move away from the people I'm with so as not to disturb them.
6. Bumping into someone or stepping on someone's toes (physically not mentally) and not saying, "Excuse me." Happens all the time. Walking down the street, in a mall, at the airport. I'm amazed at the number of people who don't actually look where they're going. Good thing they're not driving. Bump into me? Please say "excuse me" or I'm sorry." Thank you.
7. Not covering your mouth when you sneeze or cough. And a while back, I learned that it's best to sneeze or cough into your inner elbow instead of using your hand to cover your mouth. Makes sense to me. I speak at conferences and people like to come up after I speak and talk with me. They sneeze, cover their mouth with their hand and then nicely offer that hand to me. YIKES! Yes, I use a lot of hand sanitizer.
8. Loud voices in an airplane. To sit behind, in front of, or across from someone who is shouting to get over the sound of the airplane motor noise is maddening. It's RUDE to shout in those small areas. Same thing goes when you're in an elevator. I hear people shouting to the guy who's standing right next to him. It's rude to the others. FYI....same goes for talking on a cell phone in an elevator. RUDE!
9. Not asking for time to talk, when you call someone. Barging into their lives as though they've been sitting there waiting for you to call. I turn down 100% of the sales calls I get when they don't ask if they've caught me at a bad time. It's just a simple little courtesy - and plain old RUDE if you don't. Even on a non-sales call to one of your relatives or friends, it's a nice thing to do. Ask for time to talk. "Do you have a quick minute, Nancy?" That would work.
10. Making me wait when there is no one else waiting and there are two of you talking to each other. Sorry, but that happens a lot. That's not just bad customer service. It's downright RUDE.
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Nancy Friedman is president of Telephone Doctor®, an international customer service training company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, specializing in customer service and telephone skills. She is a KEYNOTE speaker at association conferences and corporate gatherings and is the author of four best selling books. Call 314-291-1012 for more information or visit the Web site at www.telephonedoctor.com.
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