This is an open letter to those of you who are oblivious, inconsiderate and maybe just plain rude: Why are you like this? Maybe you aren’t paying attention; maybe you feel entitled. Whatever the case may be, you need to reevaluate your actions and your behavior and start showing some Southern hospitality by using your manners.
Courtesy and politeness are things that people don’t appreciate like they used to; you can tell when you walk around Georgia State’s Downtown campus. The students seem to lack spatial awareness.
Whether they are too invested in whatever is happening on the screen in their hands in front of them or they have just simply forgotten that there are hundreds of us who are all trying to get somewhere, they walk around with little to no regard for those around them. I’m referring to the people who stop walking dead in their tracks, the people who use the left side of the stairs and the people who stop to chat with a friend in the middle of the sidewalk.
I cannot forget to mention the people who are so excited to get on the elevator that they literally cannot wait approximately ten more seconds to give the people who were already on the elevator an opportunity to get off. I know I’m not the only one who gets frustrated by all of this.
“People will just cut in front of you [before you are able to get off] and just jump in the elevator. Like, c’mon guys. Just wait a little bit,” Georgia State freshman Dahla Myers said regarding students’ lack of elevator etiquette.
I find it incredibly refreshing when people add a “please” to their requests, say, “Thank you” to whoever is owed gratitude and offer a genuine “you’re welcome” to those they have helped out. I appreciate these things because they are becoming increasingly less common, which is mind-boggling.
You can gain so much just from being polite to other people. For example, employers would most likely prefer to hire a well-mannered individual rather than someone who does not display common courtesy.
Myers also addressed how impoliteness affects the culture of the campus.
“As many people as there are here and as social as a college is supposed to be, when you’re walking past people, they’ll just look down,” he said. “I’m the opposite. I’m trying to be like, ‘Hey! How are you doing?’”
It’s hard to be friendly when others aren’t particularly receptive.
On another note, being polite is something that has become gratifying to me. Other people take note of how you interact with them and they tend to appreciate someone who communicates in an amicable, respectful way.
Perhaps I am old fashioned, but I consider having good manners to be something that everyone should strive to do. It is obviously a negligible behavior, but I believe that it will likely improve your interactions with others and maybe even open you up to some opportunities that you may not have received if you were impolite instead.
