Turn Off Your Cell Phone
Posted: Tuesday, July 14, 2009
by Jeffrey Betman
http://lifeiseasycoaching.com/sq
Turn.
Off.
Your.
Cell phone.
Want an easier life? Turn off your cell. OK, I have to get this off my chest. Yes, I use a cell phone. Have for years. But over the last few years the number of people using cell phones has dramatically increased.
Even worse is the way people use their phones. Here are some of my observations. I have seen numerous guys in public bathrooms with a cell in one hand andwell, you get the picture.
I have watched a parent have a sit down dinner in a restaurant with their child and stay on the cell phone the entire time. What amazes me is how good the kids are. They are patient and try all kinds of maneuvers to get their parents attention. Usually the kids give up in the end. Sometimes their behavior goes off the charts.
Have you been out to eat and heard entire one-sided conversations from people on their cell phones? I watched a teenager run onto a tennis court, play tennis with one hand and talk on his cell phone with the other hand. I have been in movie theaters where people dial out to talk with their friends. In the movies! Now, come on. Enough is enough.
Do not even get me started on people using cell phones while driving their cars. Mostly they are oblivious to the world around them. Really, I have given up on letting people into traffic if they are on the cell phone. Rarely do they even know I exist. I have watched people drive" their cars with a cell in one hand and a burger or drink or cigarette in the other. What would happen in the even they had to stop suddenly or make a quick maneuver with their car to avoid an accident. More likely they would cause the accident.
Now to making your life easier. When talking with somebody has their phone ever rung? Did they pick up and start talking to that person? How did you feel? The message is clear: whoever is calling is more important than you. Please do not do this to your clients or customers or family or friends.
When I go into an important meeting or I am in session I turn off my cell phone (usually just leave it in the car) and turn off my office phone. When I am with a client, my purpose is to be very clear on one point: the client is the most important person there. Period. I should not be talking to anybody else. I have nothing to distract me. No pager (left in the car), no cell phone. Just me and my client.
Same is true with my family. Sure, when I am out and about I have my cell on so I am reachable. But family time is family time. Treat it sacred because it is. Dont neglect time with your family.
The cell phone is great for getting back to people on the fly or touching base with someone quickly. But, it is horrible at improving your people skills. Does it make your life easier? In some respects it does. In other ways it complicates life.
If you want an easier life, cut down your use of the cell phone. Get face to face with people. Look them in the eyes. Thats how you establish trust and credibility. Be real with people.
Your Life Is Easy Coach,
Jeffrey Betman
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Top-level comments on this article: (2 total)Hi Jeffrey.This is the first article by you that I have read and so I will say welcome to SW.I couldn't agree with you more about cell phones. My husband and I have one each for emergencies only. They are always off unless we need to use them.I would also like to point out that the use of paragraphs would make your article a little easier to read. It seems to be especially important for on-line articles because it is too easy to lose your place while scrolling down. Paragraph breaks help a reader to keep better track of where they are in the article.Thanks for sharing your thoughts,Dianne
Fixed the paragraph issue. Thanks for the comments.
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