The pandemic forced us to change the way we communicate, and some of those habits remain in our daily lives nearly three years after the first lockdown was announced.
We now rely more heavily on virtual conversation, and while everyone loves a video call now and again, voice notes have been a point of contention. They are super convenient, whether you're walking the dog and want to tell your friends some gossip hands-free or want to send a lengthy job update to family without calling. Some people find them infuriating, however, and etiquette expert William Hanson agrees as he's deemed them as impolite.
He listed his do's and don'ts for 2023 to Femail, and it's bad news if you're a big social media lover, as he believes our attention spans have become smaller thanks to our phones.
Things that William is a fan of include holding doors for people, writing thank-you letters, and sticking to traditional dress codes.
He also believes if you're going into the office you need to dress 'properly', use people's correct pronouns, and improve your communication skills in the real world - as sometimes we can rely too heavily on technological advances.
William has a strict list of don'ts, and if you want to be a polite person, he firmly believes you should stick to them.
He urged people to avoid social kissing when greeting friends post-pandemic, as it can cause some people to become anxious, and slammed anyone who leaves a table before everyone has finished their meal.
Long voice notes are a particular bugbear of his, which is bad news if you're a fan of sending podcast-long VNs.
He said: "Personally, I like sending voice notes, although I don't send them to people I don't know very well. But obviously, you can't always listen to a voice note if you are in a busy place or a meeting.
"When I send a voice note, I always tag it with a message saying something like, 'About lunch tomorrow' or 'not urgent'. And I don't expect an immediate reply.
"I don't approve of long voice notes, however, and wasting someone's time. Thankfully, the tech has adapted so you can now fast-forward them. "
Do you agree with Williams's tips? Let us know in the comments.
