People wearing earbuds (or earphones) of any sort are communicating that they don't want to be interacted with, so I don't.
jedberg · 7h ago
Not necessarily. My nephew is 14, he has an earbud in any time he is awake, as do his friends, unless they're playing sports. They still have conversations.
At least to the young generation, it no longer indicates "do not disturb". It just means they're ready to listen to something on their phone without bothering everyone.
Rotundo · 3h ago
That signals that their phone is more important than my interaction.
Which is fine, but I'm not engaging in that. My attention is worth something too, I'm not investing in a bad ROI.
JohnFen · 7h ago
They may not be intending to communicate it, but it's what they're communicating.
Also, for my part, trying to have a conversation with someone who is wearing earbuds is irritating because of the clear indication that they're not interested or paying attention and therefore there's no point in talking with them.
At least to the young generation, it no longer indicates "do not disturb". It just means they're ready to listen to something on their phone without bothering everyone.
Which is fine, but I'm not engaging in that. My attention is worth something too, I'm not investing in a bad ROI.
Also, for my part, trying to have a conversation with someone who is wearing earbuds is irritating because of the clear indication that they're not interested or paying attention and therefore there's no point in talking with them.