Our home and our family is very tech savvy. We have multiple gaming systems, everyone has a laptop and various electronic devices, and, of course, we have a home electronic assistant (two types to be exact – Google Home and Alexa).
Having these devices has become part of our routine. If we have a question, we ask the device (What is the weather forecast for tomorrow? What pizza joint is open in the area? What movies are playing?). If we need to do certain activities, we ask the device (Please set the temperature to 70 degrees). If we need to set a timer, we ask the device (Please set a lasagna timer for 45 minutes).
So, its no surprise that I use one of these devices every night to set my morning alarm.
What was a surprise was that tonight I heard the kids giggling when I asked Google to “Please set the alarm for 5 am”.
Ha Ha – very funny.
Yes, mom said “Please” to a machine.
And that was it. I didn’t give it any more thought at that time.
But later, as I lay in bed thinking about the day’s events, my thoughts wandered back to that simple insignificant moment.
Why had I said “please”?
The answer, it turned out, was simple -because I always say “please”.
To everyone. Always.
And since I say it so often, it naturally came out when I gave the instructions to my Google Home.
And that’s ok.
I would rather say “please” and “thank you” to a machine then forget to say it when it counts.
Too often, simple displays of manners are forgotten or overlooked in the everyday hustle and bustle of life. Common courtesy, empathy, and respect are sometimes neglected and disregarded in favor of efficiency and expediency.
Yet, I feel that by displaying courtesy and by showing respect, we build interpersonal relationships that ultimately help us be more successful, achieve more, and create a positive and pleasant environment.
So, yes, I will continue to say “please “and “thank you” every day to everyone – including my devices – if that has even the remotest possibility of modeling the behavior to those around me.
After all, successful leaders know that leading by example is key – and this is true in your home as well as in your place of business.