The Cell Phone Communication Gap

How in an age with such incredible advancements in technology could there be a communication gap? Wouldn't you think improvements in the development of communication technologies would equal improved communication between people? I did, until recently.

I work weekends as a bank teller, part-time and normally at the drive-up. During the twenty hours or so that I spend at the bank each week I see lots of different customers. We are told to welcome each customer with eye contact, a smile, and a greeting using the bank's name (for those suffering from acute amnesia). Mostly I wait on our regulars and the interactions are routine and pleasant, but there are times that I help someone that I don't know. More often than not, these interactions are not interactions at all. If the car window's not rolled up, they're talking on a cell phone and any attempts on my part at making conversation are rendered feeble. When I first started working at the bank I often took offense to this type of behavior, feeling ignored and unappreciated by my customers.

Americans are notorious for wanting everything to be bigger, better, faster, and stronger so naturally they become impatient when the drive-up lanes at the bank don't move at a pace of their liking; something that is a constant in my mind as I try to please each of them. You can imagine my frustration when I look into their cars, ready to apologize for the wait, and I see a cell phone in their hand. Maybe the gap in distance between teller and customer warrants the use of cell phones while driving, in the minds of customers, but I find it problematic. What if they wrote their account number incorrectly on a deposit slip or made an error in their math? Maybe I need to ask them how they'd like their cash sorted or if they need me to process an additional transaction. Indeed this does make my job a little harder, but I find this new bad habit for Americans more troublesome than anything. Where did our good manners and basic abilities to make small talk go? I once waited on a young girl who walked up to the teller line, handed me her deposit without saying a word, and started texting. The entire time, her eyes and fingers never left that little piece of plastic. She was, I’m afraid, a textaholic. I was surprised. I mean, is it really that hard to say hello, thank you, or have a nice day? If you wouldn't spend a visit at the doctor's office gabbing on your cell phone or texting, maybe you shouldn’t do it at the bank.