‘Hey, Text Me Back!’ Here’s What To Do When People Wait Hours To Return Your Texts
Do you hate it when people take forever to text you back? Or are you one of those people who take your own sweet time returning text messages from friends and family. Either way, we think you’ll appreciate this video from our friends at BuzzFeed, who know exactly the right way to respond when you send someone a text, and they wait hours before getting their thumbs in gear to get back to you.
Note that some of the language in this video includes profanity — but if you’ve ever been on the receiving end of a long=delayed text response, we’re sure you’ll understand.
This whole notion of texting etiquette is a new one, of course. Back in the days when you had to actually pick up a telephone — one usually attached to a wall — to reach someone, it was pretty normal to wait an hour or two, or even more, to get a call back. And heaven forbid you should actually send a letter — through the mail! You could wait weeks to hear back.
But today, you send a text message and if you hear nothing back in the next few minutes, admit it, your blood starts to boil.
So why do certain people wait hours to text back? One expert says the answer is pretty obvious. The person on the other end isn’t interested in communicating with you.
“Normally,” says the Adult Social Skills site, “slow text responses are coupled with other related indicators of social rejection, such as:
• You always have to initiate text messages and communication with the person;
• The text message replies tend to be short and lack enthusiasm. Normally, the response effort is disproportionate to the effort that was put into the initial text;
• The person does not normally respond to statements, only questions.”
But if you’re a victim of long text response times, don’t despair. Another view holds that often the reason is just that “people are busy!”
“When someone does get around to having time to respond to a text, maybe he or she doesn’t have enough time to send a paragraph,” said another commenter. “A short response does not accurately relay emotion. A delayed or short response is nowhere near an accurate way to judge someone’s interest level.”
So, be honest, what kind of text responder are you?
