I was brought up to always say please and thank you and to be polite to people. These are traits I hope I am passing on to my own children.

There is no place for bad manners and it annoys me when people are rude.

Don’t get me wrong, I am not above sarcastically saying “thank you” when someone doesn’t hold a door open, or “you’re welcome” when they don’t say thank you.

But it disgusts me when you see someone throw items on a counter at the checkout, ignore the cashier, begrudgingly pay and then disappear into their own little world of self-importance.

Even worse is people who unload and their trolleys at the supermarket while on their phone the entire time, refusing to acknowledge anyone else.

If I ran supermarkets, they wouldn’t be served until they ended their call.

Rude customers are one thing, but businesses with surly staff will soon pay the price for their bad attitude.

People will rightly vote with their feet and go elsewhere, especially as customer service is the most important feature of any business.

Less obvious is the impact of rudeness – or apparent rudeness – in our ever-increasing reliance on technology.

Talking on the phone is like having a face-to-face conversation and you react to the tone, emotion and emphasis of the other person.

But in an email, text or instant message, you don’t get that feedback. So, while out of convenience you type “email the documents for the meeting”, rather than properly addressing the person and perhaps exchanging pleasantries, you could be creating a real problem.

Coming across as rude and demanding will only put people’s backs up. If it is a customer, they will go elsewhere. If it is staff, it will demotivate them and you could find yourself with a grievance against yourself or other HR issues to deal with.

It is worth the few seconds it takes to type “Dear Jeff, hope it stops raining soon! Please email the documents for the meeting. Thanks”. Not only will it help avoid conflict, staff who are happy and feel appreciated are far more productive than those who feel undervalued.

It is just as important to reply to emails and messages, even if it is only to acknowledge receipt. A lack of response creates uncertainty about whether you have received it and if you have, what action you will take. It also annoys people if they have to chase you several times for a response. 

You might be busy, but it comes across as rude and could cost you and your company far more than the effort it took to be polite.

As I said, good manners cost nothing. If it did, it would be money well spent.