Social etiquette and common misconceptions

Have you been welcomed with an eyesore when you pay a visit to some offices or even homes of some friends?
Bad social etiquettes are those acts that create discomfort and most times,  trigger  anger in people. To put it  mild,  it is one habit that does not conform to the ethics of a family and even the society in general. Some of these bad habits could include piling up of dishes for days before washing; speaking too loud on the phone thereby dragging everyone into the phone conversation; picking certain parts of the body without decorum; dumping  clothes all over the sitting room and even bedroom and the most annoying is forgetting to flush after using the toilet. The list could be quite more.
Women are known to be  bossy when it comes to toilet etiquette. “We are known to be very sensitive when it comes to the rest room. Not every man has the patience to be restroom courteous. They don’t see anything wrong with leaving the toilet seat up after using and not even flushing it  properly after use. As women,  we need to make them understand the need to have restroom etiquettes in them. Whatever they do at home they will surely do outside and not everyone would be patient with such bad manners”
The bad and uncultured toilet habit is something we mostly experience in offices or even in our homes. It happens when we have visitors who come to spend some time with us. Unfortunately,  the culprits are mostly  are the men folk. Why this is so, remains a puzzle for many to unravel.
While it is believed that the men are mostly to blame for bad restroom habits,  this does not exonerate women who many have such uncultured manners. It is common knowledge that a few of these social no-no’s, might actually be good for the environment, at least to some degree. But then our question is,  at what point is this lack of etiquette  considered extreme?
Toilet etiquette is a hush subject most of the time, but an important one too. Both men and women have their strengths and faults when it comes to social etiquette.
Mrs. Audu Hannatu an educationist says social etiquette is the responsibility of every mother, should a child fail in imbibing this, the mother should be blamed.
Hannatu says, “When we talk of social etiquette,  it is not something that can be learnt from outside the home, this is not to say the schools are left out of teaching etiquette. The first learning place for every child is the home. Every child is an ambassador of his/her home. It is what is practiced in the homes that the child practices outside and grows up to practice in his/her home.”
 She adds “As mothers and women we should be able to teach these things we term as little mistakes to our children. If things turn bad for them in terms of social etiquette, mothers are surely to be held responsible for the flop”. 
Listening to some of the tales of unfortunate victims and the trauma they go through staying with some uncultured colleagues, friends or neighbors is something nobody wants to go through.
“It is really a terrible thing to go through and knowing that the culprits are grown up men who look well cultured and mannered. But every now and then you have to remind them that they have to flush after using the toilet. I say men because most times my co-tenants are mostly men and the whole process of inculcating toilet etiquettes into them is a very tedious task. It is such an annoying thing that most times before I go into the restroom I say a short prayer not to have an unpleasant “parcel” delivered right in my face”
“ I keep asking how can a grown -up guy with all the aura around him neglect such an important aspect of social etiquette? To me some of them were  not cultured right from childhood which has manifested in their adult life. For some , they are just plain lazy and believe that it is the job of the woman to do everything, including flushing the toilet ironically!” says Anne Patrick an undergraduate.
Surprisingly,  how most men see it as a woman’s job to do everything in the house,  even in cases where the woman is not  his  wife or in any way related to you but just a co-tenant like yourself.
“Amazingly one of them even had the courage to tell me to my face that I was the woman of the house as far as he was concerned and had to carry out my duties as a woman wherever and however I find myself. In such an instance how do you start re-orienting such a shallow- minded person” says Ms Anabel Ikechukwu who works with a mobile network in Abuja.
“It is not only men that have this uncultured behavior as some women who are termed as the best amongst the best when it comes to fashion are known to have displayed their uncultured and dirty sides in this  respect.  People should try and understand that this bad habit poses a danger to their health,  in addition to dainting their image. No matter how funky we decide to get in life, when it comes to some of these social etiquettes you cannot afford to be funky with it. Social etiquette is a  big part of every one of us and we cannot afford be ignorant about it. Social etiquette isn’t just a lady’s thing but for all irrespective of gender” says Maryam Ibrahim.
There is need for us to imbibe the basic social etiquettes to make life bearable and comfortable for those around us and most importantly ourselves. Social etiquette is not a lady’s thing as many think but should be part  of us all. Mothers on the other hand have to buckle up and start to train children on etiquette. There are certain trainings that schools cannot be dependent on to give children. As a mother etiquette starts with you unto the child and into his/her adulthood.