I dont have problems with the volume on mine. Don't go overboard with other means of communication, either! The phone was on silent Tell the person that you silenced your phone because you were in a meeting. So, you could say that your phone was in another room while you were showering. Ive just had the same problem as Riva. Person answering the phone knows nothing. I was supposed to give this person something that I have and could easily give this person, but I just haven't done it. Ive tried to arrange for them at my home and at work, and Ive had bad experiences at both places. According to bankmycell.com, here are the top 5 white lies we tell for why we didnt answer the phone. Share currently playing on Facebook (Opens a new window), Share currently playing on Twitter (Opens a new window), James Aydelott's In-Depth Weekend Weather Discussion, Join KRMG and Mix 96.5 for a Women in Business Mixer. By using this website, you accept the terms of our Visitor Agreement and Privacy Policy, and understand your options regarding Ad Choices. Ive never tried to do a phone interview using my cell phone; Im too worried about connection issues. Im not reading mortified in this email. Anonymous: And this is where my sympathy breaks down. Excuses are decently easy, especially if your not on the spot. Maybe you are creepy. That seems pretty reasonable. Hmm, my first reaction was to drop the candidate. Seek help now! The phone can be your friend, but it can also turn into an enemy if abused. This gives you the opportunity to use this excuse over and over again and no one will be the wiser. ", Brian: "No way! You don't need any excuse for this. "I had a bad signal." A distant second place with 12% of the vote. I had a headache. Were committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. This should discourage them from calling you too frequently. I missed an interview for what was later my very first internship because the interviewer for some reason couldn't reach my cell phone abroad. I will answer texts, but my friends expect to leave a message whenever they call me. I was thinking today about my own inability to beg a police officer for a warning for a very minor traffic infraction, and so I got a ticket for a fairly major one instead (I have since been able prove, however, that I was innocent) The irony is that if I had EVER been pulled over before, Id have known better how to sound sincere (yes, that part of this job applicants situation is still bothering me). I just dont answer and all my friends and family know I never answer my phone and that it will take me days to check my voicemails. 3. The girl that can't figure out how to work her own microwave and needs a friend to tell her how to use it. I very VERY rarely pick up my phone. With over 25 years of experience, he specializes in helping people manage chronic pain through the Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) Approach at Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital. Phones can get excellent reception in a specific place one day and no reception at all the next. However, this is more work than necessary and will only serve to create problems in the future. Useful 2. Remember the days before cell phones? Nobody can dictate or pressure me into answering a call if I don't wish to. Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 434,726 times. Interns and temps, eh. In general, I feel like nothing is a good excuse for this, short of a car accident or other such disaster, unless you apologize profusely and seem horrified by the oversight. Press J to jump to the feed. at a show. This, of course, is unless you were having a shower. Evidence against another chance: She missed the call. At least she did contact you. Make sure you reserve your right to avoid any call if you feel like to. What is your best excuse for avoiding a phone call? i periodically run into situations where i cannot answer cell phone simply because i did not know i was being called. B pool is right. its not even an excuse when i dont answer the phone. I answered the phone and thanked her for calling, but explained that given her initial behavior, coupled with her current tardiness, we were not interested in moving forward, but wished her the best of luck. Im not seeing mortified in the email either, but I am seeing a plausible excuse, an apology and an attempt to make it up to you by re-scheduling around your time-table. was my interviewer in the wrong or was I? Im not talking about needing to reschedule it; Im talking about not bothering to reschedule it and simply not picking up the phone when I call you at the prearranged time. Don't harass people with texts. Its also one of the best excuses for not answering phone for days. If your activity is really loud though, such as vacuuming, don't bother picking up the phone and don't make phone calls while you are in the middle of such a task. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. You can explain to the caller that your phone hung immediately when their call came in and so you were unable to pick up. We live in a pretty fast-paced world now and everyone has about 20 errands to run, but only enough time to do 10 of those errands. Anonymous Said This has happened to me once or twice, and what Ive done is give candidates my number and tell them to call me at X time. Use it to try out great new products and services nationwide without paying full pricewine, food delivery, clothing and more. I am here to break it down for you. Cool. Tap on any of the buttons below to download our app. Yeah, no one likes that. Worse, you risk coming across as desperate. If the answer to all questions is no, then ask yourself if it's worth worrying about it. Useful 1. I left a message, and she emailed me a half and a hour later, saying this: I had this happen about a month ago and the candidate called me five minutes late. 4. vimto345 10 yr. ago. then down to 6 hours, and more excuses, we settled on an 9 hour day for the 911 recall repair 8:30am-6:00pm. Come phone interview time, I dont get the call. I think were also cognizant of the general avoidance feelings that Gen Y has to the telephone. 18. should I tell my coworker about our colleagues criminal record, I deeply regret joining my companys leadership program, and more, my company is cutting my overworked teams pay as punishment for mistakes. This seems a bit ridiculous. Id definitely say not to bother rescheduling. I hate it that my ring tone is so low. If youll read through the other comments, youll see most people wouldnt even give them a second chance. Or is it just me? You may say something like, I notice youre not answering my calls, and youre probably trying to tell me something, but I cant truly guess what that is without talking to you. been there done thatringer volume sucks. And service department didn't call back for days! Faulty reception can be the perfect excuse for an unanswered text message. What do I do if the person refuses to speak to me? ), dont have one.. which is the best excuse of all, I prefer the I was talking to someone or I didnt hear the phone ring or, well dont train people to expect you to answer the phone every time they call =). People are aware of this problem. What if someone said to call back, but didn't answer when I called? Nope. If you suspect this is true, then you are probably right (unless you are totally paranoid, but I am going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you are emotionally stable). Its an acceptable letter. They are babes in the woods who we know going into it were going to need to train heavily in this kind of thing. I figured he was dressing her up and keeping her in the attic with the other dead bodies he probably has in his house. There are some people who never keep their phone on silent due to the possibility of family or work emergencies. Didnt happen. 1 of 1. You will not even give someone the benefit of 1 minute, possibly caused by a difference in the clocks you use? Phone interviews are tough because things do come up that you dont expect. Out of $800. In case you work from home, you can say that it was a Zoom meeting. how do you handle being pregnant at work? A bad phone screen is one of the excuses for not answering phone for days. If youre close to your mutual friend, explain the situation to them. The first three, inexcusable, if I were up for the job I would call to apologize and beg profusely for a time that worked for _you_. This could be a case of an "over talker" situation. Some callers will not believe the excuses you give for not answering their calls, mostly creditors. I need an excuse for not answering the phone for 2 days. Someone even posted this in a Reddit thread: they said, "I regularly don't look at my phone for hours." (I was very apologetic!). Some people may not believe your excuses. I never answer the phone if Im talking to someone else (real life), thats just rude. Another variation of this excuse was simply that you didnt hear the phone ring. All rights reserved. and definitely tell them to seek information instead of jumping to conclusions! Next are calls from whiny or needy people (You know who they are toolol). At the very least, you can discover more about the hidden concerns you may have about the candidate (Is she disorganised etc.? % of people told us that this article helped them. plonk! This is because when your phone is switched off, the phone rings only a few times before heading to voicemail. Furthermore, if you are going to argue with your children the whole time you are on the phone, you might want to reconsider that as well. I'm sure it helped that it was an international organization, but I often wonder if it hampered my chances. 2. Whats a good excuse for missing a phone interview? [deleted] 10 yr. ago. bcps virtual . I had just purchased a cell phone the day before for interviews (before the interview was arranged), so I called back and left a voice message explaining what happened. This article was co-authored by Evan Parks, PsyD. Once you make amends with a person, they are not likely to avoid you. Can You Graduate with Honors from Grad School? 1. Sending a quick email or a message on Facebook might be the best way to communicate. Or, after a few rings, an operator will say that the phone is unavailable at the moment. Every group usually has a friend that is kept around out of sympathy or because no one wants to admit they don't like Creepy Peter. time and again i have explained this can happen even at times when it is an emergency. Again, SO SORRY, TTYL!!!. Note also that it could be an emergency, so missing the call means ignoring the event. That seems pretty reasonable. It has been another 4 weeks, and nothing more has been done. Also, don't make important calls while driving. Yeah, I said it. It is fine to get a little multi-tasking done while on the phone, especially if someone calls you and you are in the middle of something. With a Client. When you give this excuse, the caller may ask, what is wrong or what happened? You can tell them the truth or lie about something if you have to. Had it been me, I would call a couple minutes minutes early. I may actually start doing this. If your friend owes you $50 and you saw her ducking down in Payless last week trying to avoid you because she was buying multiple pairs of shoes, she is no doubt going to avoid your call until A) she thinks you've forgotten there is any money owed, or B) finally has your money to pay you. This excuse works if youre a female. This can make you feel anxious, hurt your feelings and create a socially awkward situation. And well, so far shes fantastic. You dont have to answer all the time. Do you think something is wrong with my iPhone?