Before the pandemic, greetings often got a little physical: Kissing someone's cheek, kissing the air by their ear, hugging and grabbing someone's arm were all common practices.
Two decades ago, voicemail was everything because, well, it was literally everything—short of leaving a note or emailing the person from your (non-portable) desktop computer, you had no other way to let someone know why you called.
"People feel like the 'polite' or 'kind' thing to do when someone asks them to do something is to say 'yes' right away, thinking they can change their mind later," says Grotts.
You may think that if a bunch of people are included on an email, the polite thing to do is keep everyone in the loop by hitting "reply all." Unfortunately, most people get dozens of email messages a day, and "reply all" should be used only for information that the entire group needs.
Tagging friends, family and even professional acquaintances on social media has become the norm. And at first, it may seem like the polite thing to do—after all, they want to see the pics and be included, right? Not so much, says Boyd.
It's common to reply "no worries," "no big deal" or "no problem" when someone thanks you, and while these aren't rude, they can leave the other person feeling bad. "These phrases imply that they were inconveniencing you or that you saw their request as a problem," she explains.
Do this constantly and not only will it annoy others, but it'll make them worry that they're doing something to make you feel bad so often. And that, in turn, makes them feel bad, says Grotts.
You know that being late to a get-together is disrespectful and inadvisable, so you might resolve to arrive early, just to be on the safe side. And if you offer your help once you're there? Well, you may as well be the guest of honor ... right?
Compliments are a tricky business. On a surface level, they might seem like the epitome of politeness. But they can come across in ways you didn't intend. Compliments about people's appearance, in particular, can make them feel uncomfortable or even objectified.
Compliments and self-deprecating humor are two sides of the same coin. Because getting compliments can be a little uncomfortable, it can be tempting to downplay them. Besides, you don't want to seem like a braggart, responding to a compliment with "I know, right? I'm brilliant!"