Electronic Etiquette Tips and Advice
How often are you having a meeting with someone and their cell phone goes off. Some people take the call and interrupt the meeting. Bad manners, naughty, naughty! The live person you’re dealing with should have precedent.
How to stop them?
What can you do to prevent this, besides take their phone away from them? What can you do that does the job in a nice business etiquette, professional manner?
Heads up
Many of our best ideas and techniques come from our clients and participants in our public seminars. Recently I was sharing some tips in a Calgary business etiquette session and my advice was to say right at the outset, “Why don’t we turn our cell phones off so we’re not embarrassed by them inadvertently going off”.
Lead by example
A sales manager piped up with, yes that’s good Joanne, but here’s a strategy that works for me, I tell them right at the beginning “I’m going to turn my cell phone off so I can give you my undivided attention”.
Nice one
Wow! Nice one! That’s a great tip to deflect any potential awkwardness and gently nudge the other person to turn their cell phone off too. Smooth and it underlines your professionalism.
(Click here to see a funny sign to stop cell phones interrupting meetings.) What do you think, a little too direct?
Posted by Joanne Blake – Canadian Business Etiquette Expert and well-mannered cell phone talker
P.S. Another great way to improve your soft skills? Check out our Complete Professional Workshops.
I have used at larger meetings with powerpoint presentations a slide that sit there before the meeting with the message “no cell phones please” or the pictogram: traffic sign with a cell phone picture crossed out