I’m 75 and have always hated to call people. I didn’t mind receiving calls, until they invented telemarketing, but even that doesn’t bother me. My wife is even more reluctant to make calls than me, so I wind up making most of them and it is gotten easier in the past 20 years or so. The worst was when I wanted to call a girl and ask for a date (which I haven’t had to do in 47 years; the very last one being my now wife). I was in an absolute swivet and sometimes just didn’t do it.
Now I generally prefer email, but that is partly because it is asynchronous–no games of telephone tag. What I hate now is voice mail. Especially the kind that tries to understand speech. That is the absolute pits. Any company that uses it hates their customers.
I’m 25, and I adore talking on the phone if it’s a close friend. What I don’t like is talking on the phone with someone I don’t know as well, because then I have to make an effort to be perky and polite. (Not that I’m a bitch to my friends, just that if I grumble or act tired I know they won’t take it as a personal slight.) Oh, and family. My family may know me well, but I still have to watch what I say and how I say it around them.
On second thought, maybe that’s just a commentary on social interaction in general and not at all specific to the phone. Sorry.
One thing I really hate about phone calls is not having the data or whatever right there. Someone says they will do something? Well, they can and do totally lie. In e-mail? They can still deny but the evidence is there for all to see, plus you’re never thinking “Did I ask her about that?” Just check your sent mail.
Plus, i was thinking about this this weekend. All my bad news, ever, throughout my life has come via phone.
I’m 39 and am considered a social butterfly. I love chatting with people at work and in my social life, love parties, and love going out after work with my friends.
I hate and despise the phone. I never, ever answer it - in fact as I type this I have 11 unheard voice mails on my phone that I don’t have any plans of listening to. I love texting and will text people to meet someplace face to face but won’t call them. The only time I use the phone is for business and even then it’s tough for me to use it.
I’m 44. I never minded talking on the phone or receiving calls – though I’ve always been anxious about initiating – until my first office job, at age 29. I spent enough time on the phone, in disagreeable conversations with unhappy clients, that it put me off the phone generally. At work I stick to email whenever I can, and outside work I happily communicate by text, email, or Facebook.
Oh, and in person. I like to communicate that way too.
That, too. My first boyfriend stalked me; and a bunch of people from the Indian comminuty used to stalk me on the phone when I broke away from my parents. I mean, they’d call me constantly and tell me what a bad kid I was being and how I was breaking my parents’ heart. This girl I wronged once when I was fifteen stalked me for three years in revenge. And then I did three years at a customer service job.
I don’t like making phone calls (not afraid of them) to companies, not so much for individuals. I keep thinking I’ll be put on hold, or forget what to say.
This, too. My dad called me last night at 8:30. Just because the phone rings I am obligated to talk to whomever is on the other side? I think not. I let it go to VM. I wish I didn’t even have a VM, but it’s good for important calls.
Does anyone actually tell you that you are obligated to talk to anyone who calls when they call? A phone call is an invitation to interact with someone.
I don’t have anxiety over personal calls, but calls to strangers? Hells yes. I start to sweat and my mind turns to mush, which in turn makes me more anxious. I think it’s because I’m being put on the spot. Many of my calls through work require to me to be multitasking, checking things out on the computer while I’m talking. I don’t like being pressured to say something. I might not know the answer offhand, and I don’t know how to deal with people who don’t like the answer I gave them. Email and texts let me think about what I want to say. My emails are professional and eloquent, whereas on the phone I end up blabbering things to clients like “Colleague ? He’s in the bathroom right now!”. True story.
If I can order food online or book an appointment online you get my money! I chose my last hairdresser because they had online booking.
I wouldn’t say I’m afraid to talk on the phone, but I’ll put it this way: I’ve always had the cheapest possible cell phone plan and I’ve amassed about twenty billion rollover minutes.
I’ve had near panic attacks about making phone calls. I hate calling people. I can now usually call friends and family if I absolutely need to do it, but I still have difficulties calling strangers or businesses. I prefer texting. It’s not my favorite thing, but I don’t really mind receiving phone calls.
This is actually the conclusion that I came to since starting this thread and thinking about this a lot. If I call someone and they are busy, they are free to not answer. If they answer then I’m not bothering them.
I also hate talking on the phone. I don’t have a mobile phone for primarily this reason. Email gives me time to compose a response, go on at length, and feel like I’m not interrupting or in any immediate hurry for their own reply. Unfortunately, most of my friends and family barely use email at the best of times, so I have a very quiet life most of the time.
I’m 34, and as a teenager, loved talking on the phone and spent hours on it. Since then, I’ve developed phone anxiety at some point, probably when I started work, and now I prefer email/text/fb for interactions.
As mentioned, it gives you a written record of what was said, so when friends turn up at the wrong time/wrong address, I can reassure myself it’s not my mistake (even if I’m too polite to go “nyeh-nyeh, your fault!” at them)
Plus I have an appalling memory, so if it’s in writing, I’m more likely to (a) remember typing it and (b) able to double check what I said!
I will use the phone when I have to, but I really hate even making a 30 second phone call to make appointments with doctors, dentists etc
I’ve hate making phone calls my whole life. My therapist thought it was really odd. I don’t mind being on the phone. But I absolutely hate calling someone, whether for an appointment or a friend to see if they want to go to a movie. I have to dial into a meeting now in four minutes…that I don’t mind. I don’t like to make the phone call to have pizza delivered. I do cope, and pizza has gotten almost routine, but I’ve been putting off calling for a dentist appointment for way too long.
What I hate is the attitude that someone rings your mobile, you have to answer instantly. I don’t have my mobile glued to my hand, I have to find it, and nine times out of ten, I can’t find it.
Doesn’t help that I have to have it on silent all the damn time because Mother freaks out if she hears it ringing. I tell people “if I don’t answer, don’t panic, I’ll ring you back”, but they never listen…
