From Human Beings to being Human!

From Human Beings to being human!

A fine afternoon, I was walking towards the lift when it stopped at my floor during the lunch break. Surprisingly, the person standing next to the control panel pushed the close door button despite of the fact that he saw me coming in. Bang! I got squished between the doors.

Everyone standing in the lift was shocked. Ignoring the scene, I stepped in and my ears were waiting to hear something called “I’m sorry.” The fun part is That person didn’t even feel bad for what he did! I took a deep breath, gave him a smile and said thank you very much!

Has this ever happened to you?

You’re making a run for the lift in the corner as you see people getting into it. As you get nearer and in plain sight of people already inside the lift, the doors of the lift start to close. The person whose finger is pressing on some button inside the lift sees you from the corner of his or her eyes. The look quickly shift downwards or he or she looks away, pretending that he or she never ever saw you rushing to the lift.

You’re short of shouting out “hold the doors” because you can’t due to the panting from the short sprint you made for the lift. As you now come into full sight of people in the lift, magically everyone just can’t see you. The gap of the lift doors become smaller and finally, they completely shut together on your face and you are left there panting like a stupid fool, who now have to wait a minute or two for the next lift. And oh, this always happen when you're running a little late!

Since I was a kid, my parents, grandma, teachers, everyone used to teach me “Manners Matter!” The above incident is just one example where some basic courtesies are overlooked in our work and personal Life. But we seriously need to realize that sometimes small deeds of kindness or polite words can make big difference. Moreover, the way you behave and treat other people reflect your family background and how you are perceived.

Social Responsibility is not just limited to charity or helping the needy. Being a human it’s our basic responsibility to act like humans. Whether you attend a wedding dinner you’ll see a lot of food getting wasted and some push and rush hush or you see people littering here and there even if there are trashcans placed in the parks, the beach etc, whether you’re driving on the road and someone suddenly overtakes you and comes in front without giving the indicator or you’ll see public transport fully loaded with passengers like animals, whether it’s a meeting or a training session where participants are disgracing the speaker by playing with their cell phones, or people chewing snacks while talking to you on the phone or smoking in their offices despite there is a dedicated floor for smokers. And oh I almost forgot. Saying Please, Thank You, taking excuse from others while leaving the lunch/dinner table and being courteous is now considered stuffy or conventional as people now prefer to be arrogant rather than being polite and courteous. “You're so nice to be with!” These words are a fine compliment for anyone to receive. Good manners, those that help people become “nice to be with,” are what etiquette is all about.

Misuse or improper use of Office stationery is also very common in workplaces or making long distant calls using office lines. People also ignore the fact that their body odour / bad breath also gets on the nerves of other people at times. The best way to avoid embarrassment is to use an anti-perspirant or to keep a deodorant or a perfume with you to avoid body odour problems. For bad breath, use mouth fresheners, mint etc.

We all receive visiting cards but how many of us actually acknowledge it after receiving it? At times the other person feels ignored if you just put it in your pocket rather than at least giving it a look.

Again, too much debate if I carry on.. I’ll conclude here with the point "Manners are an indication of character and act as a point of differentiation for a person". "How employees treat each other is a good indication of how they will treat a customer in a stressful situation." The bottom line is that good manners are a reflection of respect for others and without mutual respect it's difficult to work efficiently together.