R is for Respect: Find Out What It Means to Me

Back in March I wrote a blog post about commitment and questioned whether Gen Ys were going soft on it. Since writing that post, I have read more than a few blogs about the issue and there seems to be more and more writers expressing angst about commitment and in particular about the impact of mobile phones on etiquette.

I am now convinced that this is not an issue solely for Gen Y. Gen Xers are just as likely to choose convenience over respect. I am also firmly of the view that one of the biggest compliments you can pay someone in this day and age is to give them your FULL attention. Remember how good it feels when the person you are speaking to is entirely focused on you and is totally into what you are saying? Some people have an incredible knack for making you feel like you are the most important person in the world at that time. Call it a charm or a warmth, either way it's a dying art.

We now carry our computers wherever we go through smart phones. We are now socialising online and it has become mainstream. Miss an email or a post or a comment from someone and it could mean social suicide (not)! You're probably not even in the same timezone. Remember when we spoke to shop keepers and interacted? Surely service is a two way contract. We as customers have an obligation to the service providers too, namely that we will show them enough respect by being attentive during the transaction.

Remember the good old days when you used to talk to cabbies? Every cabbie had his take on politics, sports and the economy. Now they talk through the whole journey on their mobile phones to a friend or family member usually in a foreign language. We as passengers aren't much better. We get in a cab, state our destination and spend the whole time on a phone call. Maybe we should just cut out the middleman and call the cabby directly!

How many times have you spotted a group at a night out at a restaurant, each member on their mobile phones? Recently, I was at a restaurant with  a friend and there were about half a dozen kids young guys and girls at the table next to us, each with his or her mobile phone open looking at their Facebook pages. They might as well have gotten together online and eaten at Cafe World!

Somewhere, somehow we have lost the notion that the person we are with is the most important. They took the time and trouble to come and see you... right?

I have to say I feel more than slightly cheated when the person I am with focuses more on their phone than my witty repartee. Maybe that says something about my sense of humour. But I am not alone in these feelings and there is a small and almost silent revolution going to reclaim respect and face to face interaction. Some have closed their Facebook accounts or have ceased checking it daily. Others are tossing Twitter and turning off their phone notifications. To my fellow crusaders, I applaud you and say stand up and let's reclaim the respect that we all deserve.

Viva la respect revolution!