I’ve noticed that the people who don’t text back are often the ones who are on their phone the most.
You are with them in person and they seem pre-occupied with whatever is on their phone. It seems natural to assume then that these people would be great texters. They’re already always on their phone so they can see the texts quickly and respond!
Unfortunately, I’ve realized that “I’m a bad texter” doesn’t mean “I’m not on my phone.” Myself included. I used to tell people all the time that I was a bad texter, but it wasn’t because I didn’t see their texts it was because it felt like it took too much effort for me to do it in the moment.
A bit of selfishness, a bit of laziness.
I’ve turned on my “read” receipts to force myself to be accountable when I read a message. I used to read and forget, now I have to decide if I’m going to read a message I need to be prepared to respond right away.
Being a good texter doesn’t mean you have to be engrained in your phone when you’re with people, but just make an effort when you have time away. Very few people are actually TOO busy to text back, we decide what we make time for.
I’m still working on being better both at texting and at being better in person. I haven’t figured it out yet, but I’ve decided to stop telling people I’m a bad texter. Time to stop making excuses.