Recently over on the r/AskReddit subreddit, u/IT_GuyX asked, "What is an unwritten rule that you respect?" The comments were, of course, filled with people sharing the considerate things they do to make other people's lives easier. But with that came frustration over the fact that not everyone does these things. In fact, some people go out of their way NOT to do these things. And seeing all of these rude and selfish behaviors grouped together like this, well, my pet peeves list just got a whole lot longer.
So here are 24 rules that people wish everyone would follow:
1. "Put your shopping carts back."
2. "Give people personal space — something people should have been doing even before COVID-19 came around. I've always done this. It's just polite and the right thing to do. I hate having someone breathing down my neck or stepping on my heels because they can't respect my personal space."
3. "If there’s no trash can available, I take the trash with me until I find one."
4. "I never stop in the middle of a busy sidewalk to check my phone. If I really need to do it, I pull over to the side. I wish more people would follow this rule."
5. "When shopping, push your cart as if you were driving in traffic. Stay to the right (in the US) and pull over if you are going to look at stuff. Don't leave your cart abandoned in the middle of an aisle and walk away to grab something. Check ahead of you when making turns, maintain a respectable following distance, and don't follow so close that the wheels of your cart bite at the back of my feet."
6. "Let people off the elevator, subway, or bus before trying to board."
7. "Clean up your trash when the movie is over."
8. "On an airplane, the window seat gets an armrest and a window, the aisle seat gets an armrest and some extra leg room, and the middle seat gets two armrests. Not only do I respect it, I enforce it. I'll gladly focus the full force of my pettiness toward making you uncomfortable if I'm annoyed enough. Also, don't push your seat back on a plane, you damn heathens. We live in a society!"
9. "Clean workout equipment before and after use. I learned it in my weight training class and always follow."
"And put your weights back where they belong."
10. "Don’t go into a store or restaurant if they close soon."
11. "If you pick a human cashier who doesn’t have a bagger and you’re physically able, bag while they ring your items through."
"They already have so much stuff to do. I genuinely appreciate cashiers, and I hate when people take them for granted."
12. "When you’re stuck in slow-moving traffic as the road is merging from two lanes to one lane (because of an accident, lane closure, etc.), take turns to merge. It really bugs me when people don’t follow the 'one-for-one' rule."
13. "If you’re not actively pumping gas, do not park at a gas pump."
14. "If someone is wearing headphones or earbuds, leave them alone."
15. "If you're the first one in line at the traffic light, it's your responsibility to watch for the green. Getting distracted is rude to the people behind you."
"Traffic lights are not there so you can check your phone!!!"
16. "I wait and ask for permission before (if they allow it) petting someone's animal."
17. "When I change my mind about something in a store, I put it back where it belongs."
18. "Don't offer unsolicited advice. This applies to just about anywhere in life. If someone needs help and they ask, do it. But don't just blurt out what you see as a better way of doing something."
19. "Always leave an empty urinal as a buffer unless absolutely necessary."
20. "Park your car inside the lines. And if you park on the street, don't park really close to a driveway, even if you are providing enough room for someone to enter or exit. Exiting cars can't necessarily see through you to check for any oncoming traffic that might T-bone them."
21. "Never order expensive dishes off the menu if you're at a restaurant and someone else is paying for the meal."
22. "Public transit is a quiet zone."
23. "Don't stop right inside the grocery store. Pull off to the side or in an aisle if you need to search for your grocery list or take off your jacket. Stopping at the entrance is extremely rude."
24. And finally, "Clean up after yourself — camping, tailgating, eating out, staying in hotels, etc. Leaving a mess for others to clean up is just a scumbag move."
Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.