Elevator Etiquette: Unwritten Rules

Elevators in any part of the world, and with the world going increasingly grey, are necessities on par with the likes of trains and buses. Life without them is quite unthinkable—more so if you are on floors so high that your knees inadvertently give a sigh every time you come to know that the lift isn’t functioning. That said, and like buses and other modes of public transport, using them calls for the observance of a set of etiquette. Speaking of these etiquettes, they became rather obvious when I visited a very public office building close to my place of work. Hilarious it was in parts, but for the most part, it was also serious business and sometimes downright ridiculous with a touch of attached danger.

The list below of EEs (Elevator Etiquettes) may be of help.

1. Keep the chivalry out! Holding doors open for the fair maiden runs the risk of delaying the operation of the lift. Besides, you could find yourself being pushed outside the list in trying to do so. Don’t try people’s patience. Instead, try keeping the doors closed!
2.  Make yourself less visible! This point is for those who take an elevator to be on par with a shopping window. The stuff on either side isn’t meant to be looked at. They are there for a reason. You are there in the lift, only to be transported to your floor. That’s about it and nothing more. Get in, get out, and get on—silently like a shadow.
3. No socializing in lifts: Besides close friends, don’t try to strike a conversation with random strangers. You don’t know their moods or the reason they are in the lift. It could prove to be counter productive. Keep to yourself to the extent possible
4. No breaking and manhandling amenities that don’t work: Fan and lights sometimes don’t work in elevators. But does that give anyone the right to mangle and manhandle them? Besides the loss of amenities, these can cause grave damages to others arising out of electrical shocks and similar issues.
5. Queue’s the word: Indians, despite their complete lack of civic sense and consequent crowding at elevators, can be better served if only they learn to form queues and move in an orderly manner while first letting those inside come out at their desired floor. Most people get irritated due to overcrowding in lifts, that only gets worse due to unruly behaviour of passengers.
6. No spitting and splitting! Indians, in particular, love to mark their territory with all there is at their disposal. From scribbling names and expletives to spitting and dirtying elevators, there are far worse things we do. And try to do it all the time, as a matter of policy. While sometimes exposing one’s artistic side, it exposes us as a society that doesn’t value cleanliness and others’ space!

Ideally, the list is endless. Every day, a country like India invents ideas to deface and spoil public spaces like elevators. While making it inhospitable for others, it only adds to costs while destroying the idea of going vertical. Elevator etiquette is thus a necessity that should be adhered to, like life itself!