• Home
  • About
    • Why choose The Parks Image Group?
    • What others are saying…
    • Media
  • Corporate Workshops
    • Business Etiquette Training
    • Corporate Civility Training
  • Civility in the Workplace
  • Speaking
  • Resources
    • News and Articles
    • Books
    • Video
  • Blog
  • Contact

Peggy M. Parks, AICI CIP, CPBS

Ambassador of Corporate Civility

The Parks Image Group

Business Etiquette and Corporate Civility Experts
serving company, leadership and staff
Peggy M. Parks, AICI CIP, CPBS
Contact The Parks Image Group today and let us help you:
  • build corporate credibility and staff confidence; and
  • ensure that your employees at every level of the company represent your corporate brand and message, both internally and when they interact with the public.

A Graceful Response to an Etiquette Faux Pas

by Peggy M. Parks, AICI CIP, CPBS

As a civility and etiquette expert, I find it a nuisance when people leave their cell phones on during movies, church, and performances. It takes two seconds to switch the phone off or set it to silent, and yet I find that I’m always attending events in which a speech is disrupted by that telltale ringtone, followed by a chorus of tut-tuts and shhhhhhhs.

As someone who gives speeches and leads discussions on a regular basis, I’m especially sensitive to this etiquette faux pas as it can be incredibly distracting when you’re trying to get everyone’s attention. A ringtone can easily throw you off and make you struggle to remember your words, and almost always leads to an awkward moment in which you must choose whether to ignore the ring, confront the owner of the phone, or wait a moment for silence to resume.

I’ve heard of actors breaking character to tell a theater-goer to turn off their phone or leave, but I have to say that violinist Lukas Kmit has a much more elegant solution. While performing in a synagogue in his native Slovakia, Kmit was interrupted by a shrill Nokia ringtone. The violinist waited a beat, then played his own version of the ringtone on his violin. The crowd cheered and his point was made in a graceful way that made the situation less awkward.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uub0z8wJfhU]

Let this be a gentle reminder, once and for all, to switch off those phones!
Visit with us on facebook logo or follow us on custom twitter logo

Filed Under: Civility, Etiquette Tagged With: civility, etiquette, etiquette faux pas, lukas kmit, nokia ringtone, parks image group, peggy parks, phone eitquette, phone ringtone, turning off cell phone, violinist ringtone

Follow Peggy M. Parks!

Follow Us on E-mailFollow Us on FacebookFollow Us on TwitterFollow Us on LinkedIn

Read Peggy’s Most Recent Blog Posts

  • Thank You Notes – Tradition vs. Modernity – It Depends on the Situation
  • Email Etiquette: Your Responses Do Matter
  • Dining to Impress: Proper Dining Etiquette for Interview
  • Business Etiquette Training – Georgia Tech, Denning Technology & Management Program
  • When Businesses Don’t Bother

Peggy’s Blog Post Archives

Expert business etiquette and corporate civility consultant in Atlanta Georgia serving clients throughout the Southeast.
© 2012 - 2023  Peggy M. Parks, AICI CIP, CPBS •  Post Office Box 52066  •  Atlanta, GA 30355