Thursday Tippity Tip: 3 Ways To Demonstrate Politness that You May Not Know
Most of us grew up hearing our parents constantly tell us to say "Please" and "Thank you" and not put our elbows on the table when eating etc. Those are all good rules to live by and they add civility and niceness to one's personality, although even after all these years, I'm still working on not putting my elbows on the table! 😂 (Sorry Dad! 😉😁 )Anyway, for today's tippity tips, I thought I would share with you three politeness rules that you may not know about, but I have found add even more personableness and thoughtfulness to ones character polishing routine (AKA daily life lived interacting with people). As a totally unrelated side note, I always thought personableness was a word I had made up but it turns out it's a real word. Say whaaaat!? 😂Anyway, let's get to the rules already shall we?RULE 1 - Remove sunglasses when talking to someone! "Yeah yeah!" you say, "but what about when you are talking in the blazing sun with no shade in sight?" Let me just state that this is a general rule you should try to follow as much as you possibly can but there will always be exceptions to the rule but I think you'll be smart enough to know when those few extenuating circumstances happen. 😉 That being said, the solution to your problem is this; If you find yourself outdoors in the brilliant sunlight, try to find a position where you and the person you are talking to can chat face to face without having to look into the sun by angling yourself so the sun is more on your sides instead of straight on your faces or backs. But why does taking sunglasses off matter in the first place? They say the eyes are the window to the soul so when you wear sunglasses it's like talking to somebody behind one sided glass. Don't get me wrong, it's not that anybody is trying to be intentionally rude. In fact, it's probably not even a thought about thing. I know I have forgot to take my glasses off many times but there is something about taking sunglasses off when talking to a person or even to say thank you to the employee serving you at the drive-thru window. I have found it is so much more personable and polite! I appreciate it when somebody takes the time to extend that politeness to me. It's a little gesture but it's like they're taking down the barrier just a little and letting somebody see an expressive human behind the snazzy shades that hide one of the most captivating parts of the human face.RULE 2 - Put your phone away! I have been guilty of every now and then leaving my phone on the table and looking at it every so often when in a conversation with somebody. But when I really think about it, that is really an impolite habit. People are precious unique souls! I see hundreds of people on a daily basis but I don't interact with that many on a personal level. So when I do, surely they deserve undivided attention and shouldn't have to compete with an electronic device. Right? I can hear you already saying "But...but..." No buts! If you don't have an urgent call, then put your phone away and just enjoy the sweet fellowship with the real tangible human or humans in front of you! I don't know about you, but I have personally experienced undivided attentive-phone free (and tv free) fellowship and periodically interupted, distracted chats thanks to a noisy little device that has many of us trained to pick it up immediatly in response to a notification "BING!". The first one feels connective and special because bonding is able to happen. The second feels disconnected and not special...in fact I feel like I am intruding on other personal conversations except I have no idea what is going on...only that whatever is binging and buzzing away on the phone must be way more super interesting because it gets looked at right away no matter if I am in the middle of a sentence. So next time you head out to fellowship with some friends, make a point to leave your phone out of the conversation and just focus on those in front of you. You will notice that your relationships will be able to grow deeper, and you will learn so much more because you won't be distracted between so many conversations at once.RULE 3 - Ask about possible allergies or particular food tastes prior to having dinner guests. I don't know about you, but I always find it fun to have people over for a meal! A good habit I got into that actually started from me having meals brought to me postpartum and also being the bearer of a meal to another mother of a newborn, is to ask the person or people if they have any allergies or particular foods they like or don't like. You see, not asking can go both ways in how it affects the possible outcome. Receiving a meal or even going to someone's house for one is great...until you bite into the chili and your mouth is lit on fire because it is so spicy but your host has no idea it is that hot because habineros and ghost peppers don't even phase them so they thought they did good only putting one pepper in the chili instead of the usual four. Only you find Taco Bell spicy so anything more than salt and onion power is too hot for your pallet buuuut because they didn't ask, you suffer through by drinking as much water as you can without looking like you are waterboarding yourself. 😉 Or you serve sauteed mushrooms over rice but find out later your guests choked down what little they could because they hate the texture and taste of cooked mushrooms. Now, most people will politely eat whatever you offer them but I have found that asking ahead of time eliminates lots of possible embarrassments. It sets it up for you to be able to serve delightful dainties or mouth watering morsel that your guests will for sure find yummy and gives you time to go shopping for those particular foods that will be appealing to your guests. It's good to know beforehand if they have a gluten intolerance or if they really can't stand green beans so that you don't unintentionally put them in a position to have to refuse certain foods thereby making you feel like a bad cook. Most people with severe allergies or picky taste will let you know but it is always good to double-check because those kind of things can be forgotten. 😊These three rules may seem insignificant, but I can assure you from personal experience, they are anything but! These three little gestures are packed full of politeness. They add a specialness, genuineness, and openess that so often gets lost in the rush of busy lives. These three rules take conscious effort but are well worth the time. I hope you get to be the giver and receiver of these three rules because I know either way, you will be blessed. ❤
