I was just in a meeting where one of the individuals never took the ear buds out of their ears. I found it completely rude and disrespectful. Am I just showing my age or is this the new normal?

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Just point to your ears & simulate pulling ear buds out, are you friggin kidding me. What is everybody afraid you might hurt someone's feeling. You're at work not the gym!

likesmart

How about just come to the meeting prepared? Which means leaving your earbuds at your desk.

likesmartfunny

It’s rude, lazy and disrespectful. I would have said something. Or asked that person to come back when they are ready to engage and join the meeting.

likefunny

I once had to tell a young to tuck his bloody shirt on for a meeting with client CEO. I guess I was lucky he was even wearing a shirt?

likefunny

Gen X here. Sometimes I forget I have them in my ears and people assume I am listening to something else. Just bring it to their attention.

likefunny

Ew. No. That sentiment is a problem.

likefunny

Headphones or earbuds in, in a meeting should not be normal. The problem is the same as having a phone out: It communicates that the person might not be paying attention.
Communications experts (what they pay us for) have to be supremely vigilant about what they are communicating.
That said, it's easy to have those things in without remembering it. Call attention to it gracefully. Like you would for a friend who ate the brownies the vendor brought, and now has a nut in their teeth and some chocolate schmear on their cheek. Hey, man, you got a little something.....not there, other side. Yeah. No actually both sides. (You're welcome, you slob).

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If we don't shame it now things will escalate to VR Goggles in no time.

funny
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I'm pretty sure this person knew they were in her ears as she was playing with her hair and tucking it behind her ears. Half way through the meeting, she noticed that I kept looking at them. Rather than take them out, she untucked her hair to hide them.

Fail! Unprofessional!

On this topic ...I can’t overstate how many times I’ve had to blast colleagues for being on their phones in meetings. I’d actually take headphones over that. I had clients ask people not to come to next meeting.

Sure. But these days we will find out what meetings can be solved with just an email.

New normal. There are worse things to be offended by. I forget I have mine in all the time.

I cant believe we are living in times you can forget something is in your ears.

Yep rude AF- up there with playing with smartphone and openly typing away on laptops, If I think that people aren’t giving 100% attention I ask them to put away the devices

Apply a VHS effect filter in them and pass through the gates appealing to their sense of nostalgia, it can't fail #strangerthings

I’m confused, why not practice transparency? If you have this much time to post it here, why not tell the person right away in your meeting or have a 1-1 after. Super simple? Why even talk about age?

Both.

I get up and leave those meetings

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