Reaching you by phone

[PJ]

Let's say one of the 5 most important people in your life called you by phone at a random time. What's the chance he/she will be able to reach you (meaning you will pick up)?

[PJ]

By that way, I mean an unexpected call where you don't know who's calling. Appointments don't count.

The chance of one of the top 5 most important people (or anyone else) reaching me is probably less than 20%. That means if one of them called me 5 times, only 1 of those times will he/she get ahold of me on the phone.

The reason is that I only pick up the phone if I'm not doing anything with my hands or my attention. I consider phone calls a distraction, so it's a low priority for me. If I'm driving, eating, WC'ing, enjoying my favorite song, out with friends, etc, chances are I won't pick up.

I have some friends who are the opposite. As long as they're not dying, they will pick up the phone. According to a book on how to enjoy life, it recommends against this approach.

[GuGu]

if i have a free hand then yes, i'll pick up. but like you i don't scramble to find the phone at the bottom of my purse or dash across the room to grab it. all my friends have come to figure out that if it's important then they will leave a message. and i will call them back after i've listened and considered that it requires me to call back.

i do have friends that are driving and digging through their bags to get a call. they make it seem like every single call is SO IMPORTANT. and they look at me weird and tell me my phone is ringing when i don't even turn to look at my purse when i'm driving. i just simply tell them that i like to get to my destination safely.

and when i go out to eat with friends i normally put my phone in my bag and not on the table like my friends. some people just can't seem to part with their phones but i've gone days without picking up a call. of course then people start to wonder if i'm still alive.

[HuangYushi]

Most calls I get are work-related and occur during work-hours. I put the phone in the stationery jar (so it won't get lost under a stack of assignments on the desk, which it once did) and then conveniently forget about it. Most people who can't get me on the cell/mobile phone would call the main office line. Then, someone would have to hunt me down in the hallways (classrooms are no-go zones for calls, unless it's an emergency) to take the call!

[GuGu]

Most calls I get are work-related and occur during work-hours. I put the phone in the stationery jar (so it won't get lost under a stack of assignments on the desk, which it once did) and then conveniently forget about it. Most people who can't get me on the cell/mobile phone would call the main office line. Then, someone would have to hunt me down in the hallways (classrooms are no-go zones for calls, unless it's an emergency) to take the call!

what about when you're not at work? are you attached to your cellphone when you're out or doing other things besides work?

[wkeej]

my mobile phone is on 24 hours a day. so i am very unlikely to miss a call.

[kidd]

Unless I'm driving, in the cinema or attending class/workshop, I usually will pick up my phone.

[skylee]

The chance of one of the top 5 most important people (or anyone else) reaching me is probably less than 20%. That means if one of them called me 5 times, only 1 of those times will he/she get ahold of me on the phone.

The reason is that I only pick up the phone if I'm not doing anything with my hands or my attention. I consider phone calls a distraction, so it's a low priority for me. If I'm driving, eating, WC'ing, enjoying my favorite song, out with friends, etc, chances are I won't pick up.

I have some friends who are the opposite. As long as they're not dying, they will pick up the phone. According to a book on how to enjoy life, it recommends against this approach.

Less than 20% for me as well. My friends/family hate calling me because I have a rep for never answering my calls. Usually, my phone is on silent or vibrate because I'm either in class or at work, which takes up most of my time. And I almost never pick up while I'm driving, sleeping or eating, but I usually try to return the call at a later time.

[Lucre]

quite low. im almost deaf so i can hardly hear anything even if my mobile rings. i make it a habit to check periodically and usually answer miscalls instead.

[kidd]

Actually it's not a good habit to not pick the phone you can. I mean, is your friends/family so unimportant that you can't even stop your music for awhile to pick up their call? Not returning calls is even worse. Put yourself on the other person's shoes. How would you feel?

[remember_Cedric]

It's harder to get hold of me on weekdays because my phone is usually switched to silent mode due to work. And, if people doesn't leave me a text message after calling, I'll assume that it is not important and I won't return a call. Unless the number is from a landline, that it might be from offices or my order from a store. Only then I'll call back.

I remember during one season, I had a guilty record of 9 missed calls from different persons. I was busy.

[Lucre]

Actually it's not a good habit to not pick the phone you can. I mean, is your friends/family so unimportant that you can't even stop your music for awhile to pick up their call? Not returning calls is even worse. Put yourself on the other person's shoes. How would you feel?

actually i was wondering whom your post was addressed to, especially the 'not returning calls is even worse' (i scanned through prior posters, though most would at least return the call) then when i saw cedric's post:

It's harder to get hold of me on weekdays because my phone is usually switched to silent mode due to work. And, if people doesn't leave me a text message after calling, I'll assume that it is not important and I won't return a call. Unless the number is from a landline, that it might be from offices or my order from a store. Only then I'll call back.

I remember during one season, I had a guilty record of 9 missed calls from different persons. I was busy.

Kidd: you can predict the future?

in my case i always return the call, just that i rarely picked up the call whilst its ringing, im quite deaf. the few times i picked immediately was i happened to be holding my mobile ~ checking for misscalls or sms.

[Extremer88]

Due to my fear of radiation, I always try to switch off my mobile before putting it into the pocket of my pants.

So I can be hard to reach if I'm not bringing a bag along.

[kay &!*]

my phone is half my life I always have it nearby so I usually pick up calls/texts. if not, that just means im temp busy or ignoring you

[Bubblegum]

I use my mobile to tell the time, receive and make calls etc. The only time I have it turned off is during hospital visits. But yes I always have it turned on.

[kidd]

Seriously, some people here sound so proud that they don't answer their phone/don't return calls. That's really damn inconsiderate (not to you Lucre since you have a valid reason).

What's the point of having a phone if you are going to switch it off all the time? My uncle is like this. He's always so hard to reach.

[PJ]

Actually it's not a good habit to not pick the phone you can. I mean, is your friends/family so unimportant that you can't even stop your music for awhile to pick up their call?

Depends on how immersed you are in the music/movie/TV. I know someone who would answer the phone when he's watching the TV, but then he would continue to watch the TV and not pay much attention to the person on the phone. To me that's worse than "not answering the phone and calling back later."

Even though I mentioned music earlier as a reason for not answering the phone, now that I think about it, I rarely, if ever, do that.

What's the point of having a phone if you are going to switch it off all the time?

A valid reason is some (small # of) people use it mostly for emergency purposes. For example they may only find it useful when they're on a trip, walking in a dark alley, etc.

[PJ]

Seriously, some people here sound so proud that they don't answer their phone/don't return calls. That's really damn inconsiderate (not to you Lucre since you have a valid reason).

What's really inconsiderate is that some people would answer the phone and talk for a long time when they're with someone else at the time. They must not think their real life companion deserves respect for their time, while the person on the phone does.

IMO, when your phone rings while you're with someone, you should either not answer the call or answer and as soon as possible let the caller know you're taking up someone else's time and ask if it's ok to call back later.

[kidd]

What's really inconsiderate is that some people would answer the phone and talk for a long time when they're with someone else at the time. They must not think their real life companion deserves respect for their time, while the person on the phone does.

IMO, when your phone rings while you're with someone, you should either not answer the call or answer and as soon as possible let the caller know you're taking up someone else's time and ask if it's ok to call back later.

Yes, that should be the case. I'm not asking you to chat on the phone for a long time while you are engaged with someone. But, not picking up the phone when you can is still inconsiderate and it's nothing to be proud of. I hope you return the calls of those people who disrupted your song listening enjoyment by calling in 'inappropriate' time.

I'm been in both situation i.e. calling people who just won't pick up their phone or return your calls and be the one who waited while the other person chat on his phone. But, I still think it's inconsiderate to not answer calls when you can.

[PJ]

Kidd, that's why there is a thing called voicemail, and another thing called keep calling. If it's an important call, one of these 2 things will happen. When your hands and/or attention are occupied, you owe it to yourself and your loved ones to not divert your attention. By the way, music is not one of them. In case you missed it, I'll say it again: I've rarely, if ever, avoided a call due to music. I stated this 2 posts above, correcting my mentioning of music in my original post.

Nowadays it's sad when many people are becoming slaves to their phone, in what Gugu humorously but accurately painted as scrambling to find the phone at the bottom of [one's] purse or dashing across the room to grab it. While one should answer the phone when he's hands- and attention-free, one should not develop an obsession around it.