When the phone rings do you ALWAYS answer it?

Question

Do you feel compelled to answer the telephone when it rings? Are you one of those people who just HAS to answer it?

Answer 1

No way! This drives my husband crazy. HE HAS to answer it. But for him I guess it is cultural because it was always to expensive to make phone calls just to chat so he always assumes it is important. THIS is why I cannot just unplug the phone to get some alone time with him. He would go CRAZY if he found out!

Answer 2

Now this is a great dilemma for me. We have our company 'message slip' that has got 'telephone manner' printed on its reverse side. We try to maintain these etiquettes and things were okay till end1900s.

With the explosion of information and also increase of terrorist, hijacking and other form of blackmailing techniques done by using landlines phones where caller IDs are either not visible or activated by the local phone companies.

We were getting all sorts of 'request' for 'donation' and extortion by the racketeers that I have stopped picking up phone calls. What we do is that we have operators to screen the calls and then pass it on to the respective persons. This at times is annoying for the caller but we have to explain them why the delays are caused and why our operators would ask a few questions before transferring the call.

However, the cell phone (mobile) has changed all these screening system upside down. People would call a wrong number and without introducing they would start with their agenda. This is true for the kind of population we have where literacy rate is blow 50% but the availability of cheap mobile phone has reached about 75% of the population, directly or indirectly.

So, in answer to your question, I would say I used to always answer the calls and it is natural instinct to go for the cradle when there is an incoming ring. And yes, I'm one of those kinds of people who think that if the call gets dead then may be any emergency or important call has been missed.

Btw, I do not pick up any call made through my residence number, since I know that most of those calls are for my kids or wife. Just in case any relative would call me in that number, I'm always asked to attend or call back in my spare time.

Answer 3

No, however I do answer calls from numbers that I do not recognize because I never know if it is a friend that I have not be in touch with in a while.... My cell phone number has never changed!!! It's the numbers that I know, the people that I talk to all the time that I ignore....

Answer 4

I answer phones all day at work so when I am home I will let the thing ring, unless it's someone I really want to talk to (gotta LOVE caller ID!) :-)

Answer 5

No. As a matter of fact, I screen all calls with an answering machine. The stupid caller ID doesn't show all numbers, so I told AT&T to drop it.

Answer 6

No, I do not always answer the phone. Since caller ID I will answer occasionally when previously I would not have.
Peace.

Answer 7

No,sometimes I just let the machine pick it up.I used to be one of those people that just had to pick it up in 3 rings....now if I get it in 9 that's not bad.

Answer 8

Nope. I don't like to talk on the phone much. I just peek at the caller id.

Answer 9

NO! I leave my answering machine on all day and screen the calls cause there are so many solicitors and if it is someone I need or want to talk to I 'll pick it up.

Answer 10

Nope. Not all all. To my discretion- if someone doesn't reveal themselves on caller ID, they can leave a message.

You should see me when the doorbell rings...