DLYCBK!* Etiquette #5 Use a spell and grammar checker

A pretty kak fad is using textspeak, or text language when sending an SMS or WhatsApp. It is sloppy and it is disrespectful towards the person you are sending the message to.

Spelling and grammar gremlins happen, however many of them are avoidable with a quick ‘once over’ before the mail or text is sent. I have received e-mails from people in fairly senior positions where the emails were riddled with spelling and grammar mistakes. This definitely dented my perception of them. My Mom once received a letter from a fairly well known organisation full of grammar and spelling mistakes. She sent it back to them riddled with red pen and asked them to review and resend it.

Respect the person that you are sending an email to, regardless of who they are or what their position is at work. Re-read your correspondence before sending it; the recipient may not necessarily have the time or inclination to unscramble your incoherent sentence structure. Again, it’s a respect thing.

American entrepreneur, author and motivational speaker, Jim Rohn, has such good advice when it comes to language, he believes in broadening your vocabulary; words impact your success.

"Vocabulary enables us to interpret and to express. If you have a limited vocabulary, you will also have a limited vision and a limited future."  ~Jim Rohn

If you do not have words to express yourself you will end up expressing yourself poorly, and you will make poor decisions. [As a side note, the best way to improve your vocabulary, spelling and grammar is to read more.]

*Don't Let Your Communication be k@k!

DLYCBK!* Etiquette #4 Remember birthdays

 

This one I am quite pedantic about. Birthdays are important. In fact, it is the most important day of a person’s life, without it, they would not be here. For this reason, they need to be celebrated!

When I turned 40, I was travelling at the time and was only able to organise a get together to celebrate it much later in the year. Everyone had a merry old time! The following year my birthday was rather low key, not one person that attended the party the previous year remembered it, a pretty kak feeling, which I do not wish on anyone. 

Write people’s birthday’s down, don’t rely on social media to remind you, everyone has some sort of diary, use it. At minimum send a text to wish them happy birthday. Even the smallest gesture means a lot!

*Don't Let Your Communication Be d@k!

Re.Bag.Re.Use: 80’s décor revival with VHS tapes

Textured patterns, 1980’s revival and sustainability are some of the key 2022 trends identified by home décor experts*.

All three of these décor trends are perfectly captured by the design of the beautiful Re.Bag.Re.Use scatter cushions which are made from repurposed VHS and cassette tapes.

Re.Bag.Re.Use is an initiative that was borne in Hout Bay;  it started off as a hobby during the Covid-19 lockdown. “The flagship product is a multifunctional bag, crocheted and repurposed from empty bread bags, but as the project is growing and building momentum, additional products are being added to the product range,” shares founder, Regine le Roux.

The most recent addition to Re.Bag.Re.Use’s exclusive range, is giving a second life to old VHS and cassette tapes. VHS and cassette tapes are in most cases not recyclable or not accepted by recyclers, therefore repurposing this material is the next best sustainable option.

Textured pattern: The tape of the VHS and cassette tapes gives the products a marvellous metallic shimmer, which creates a beautiful textured pattern.

1980’s revival: VHS and cassette tapes is the epitome of the ‘80’s! Re.Bag.Re.Use gives these old tapes a new, beautiful, purpose and second lease on life.

Sustainability: Looking after the environment is one of the key factors of the project. Repurposing this material into multifunctional products diverts it from landfill and keeps it out of the environment. The hard black outer covering of the videos are also repurposed into wonderfully retro foot stools!

(Credit: Picture taken from kykNET.tv)

Rita Ncube, who is one of the Re.Bag.Re.Use artists who crochets with the video tapes shares, “It is incredible to think that something that seems as useless and defunct as an old VHS tape, can be made into something so beautiful!”

The pandemic has had a dire economic impact on many people. Re.Bag.Re.Use provides community members a small way to supplement their incomes with a bit of extra pocket money. It’s not a full time job and the ladies who are part of the initiative are not employed by Re.Bag.Re.Use. They get paid a stipend for crocheting Re.Bag.Re.Use products, which helps them to buy essentials for their households.

A percentage of all the sales also goes to local charities.

There are currently fifteen ladies who are part of the Re.Bag.Re.Use team.

For more information please visit our Instagram page: 

www.instagram.com/re.bag.re.use/

Website: www.rebagreuse.com

WhatsApp: 083 302 1528

Email: regine@rebagreuse.com

*20 Top Interior Design Trends 2022 from Home Decor Experts (goodhousekeeping.com)

 

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Additional photos:

 

Above: scatter cushions made from cassette tapes

Bathroom mat made from empty plastic bags

DLYCBK!* Etiquette #3 You and your phone

Something that is incredibly frustrating, and actually just plain rude, is when you get a phone call and the other person just starts talking without introducing themselves or asking whether it’s a convenient time to speak. What irritates me even more, is when someone calls me and doesn’t greet and immediately asks ‘whose talking?’ or 'how are you?'

When you call someone, always introduce yourself first, and ask whether it is convenient for them to have a conversation with you. It will also be helpful if you give a short synopsis of what you want to talk to them about so that they can determine whether they have two minutes to chat to you now or need to set more time aside to continue the conversation later.

It’s incredibly frustrating when someone just starts talking and you can’t get a word in edge wise to let them know that you are not the right person to speak to.

When it comes to you and your telephone, the other thing that irks me: you don’t always have to wait for someone else to reach out to you. I often feel that if I didn’t reach out to certain people, I would honestly never hear from them. Although, it is quite interesting how often I hear from people when they want something. 

A good friend from school used to say that her phone also receives phone calls and messages, it should not be a one-sided exercise. Twenty-plenty years later, this is still very relevant today.

*Don't Let Your Communication Be K@k!

DLYCBK!* Etiquette. Reply to correspondence #2

 

If there is something that drives me up the wall, is when someone does not have the decency to reply to correspondence. Even a ‘bugger off’ is better than being ignored. This goes for all your channels of communication, emails, WhatsApps, phone calls, SMS’ and even LinkedIn messages. There was a very interesting article published by Forbes[1] describing rejection (which in my opinion is the same as ignoring someone) and physical pain being the same for your brain. Here is an excerpt from the article:

We all know that rejection hurts, but neuroscience has concluded that it does in fact, literally, hurt. While the brain does not process emotional pain and physical pain identically, the reaction and cascading events are very similar, and a natural chemical (painkiller mu-opioid) is released during both events. For example, when someone feels physical pain, opioids are released in the brain so that the significance of the pain is inhibited. We now know this same experience occurs when an individual feels slighted or rejected by others.

Everybody is busy. Everyone, not just you. Sometimes a response back may need a bit of time, or you genuinely do have a manic day where responding to texts or emails are just not possible. We have all had those days. But at least let the person know and acknowledge that you have received their correspondence and that you will get back to them. Or, pull the plaster and just let the other person know that you are not interested in hearing from them. Obviously do it in a non-kak way. It will sting the other person a bit, but at least they will know where they stand and won’t have to deal with the horrendous feeling of being blanked or keep wasting their time of sending messages into a void that never gets reciprocated.

My advice, don’t be kak. Just reply.

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[1] Rejection And Physical Pain Are The Same To Your Brain (forbes.com)

*Don't let your communication be kak!