Friend keeps sending long voice notes instead of messages

[GirouxSein]

A friend has started sending voice notes for everything. Some of them are 5 minutes long and I often can’t listen straight away. It then feels rude when I reply hours later.
I know it’s probably meant to be more personal, but I find it a bit overwhelming and honestly prefer a normal message I can skim when I’m busy.

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Ohhh nope I couldn’t handle that … it’s the person sending being lazy and putting all the work on the receiver…

Just respond either abruptly which I would -sorry don’t have time to listen to your Shakespearean monologue can you text me please

or nicely - if you have kids use them to your advantage

Lauren can’t listen to your voice notes as the kids listen in / I’m at work I’d prefer to communicate either face to face or over messages. See you soon

I wouldn’t then respond to voice notes only messages

i can’t stand voice notes they mean I can’t read I have to stop and listen to someone’s ramble

It’s rude to leave them. Just tell her. “Drop me a text, or call, the voice notes won’t get listened to”.

I take it you’ve told her you dislike them?

Is that what people do? So no one is listening to each other 😄

I hate voice notes and never listen!

Apple does it with your voicemail already 😊

Jesus, it sounds like the bad old days of long, rambling answerphone messages. You get in from a shit day at work having picked up the DC from after school clubs and you’re faced with:

‘MESSAGE 1. Hello. Hello? Autumn, are you there? Hello? Oh. <pause> Well, it looks like I’ll have to talk into your machine then <sigh> doesn’t it? Hmmm. Anyway … <ramble ramble> …’

CLICK. The machine timer stops the recording.

’MESSAGE 2. Hello? Autumn? Well I don’t know what happened there, I was cut off, I’ll have start again now …’

I threw mine in the bin.

Oh gosh 😄

Oh they’re so annoying. I only have two culprits in my life. I always defer them until ages later. It’s always just waffle and one is from a friend who is walking her dog so always background puffing and wind. One is from a car and differently annoyingly noisy.

Can't handle this. They need to text instead.

tell her you couldn’t hear her properly and can she text

I have one like this, however they are suffering from a debilitating condition

I don’t listen, also don’t listen to vm

I just phone back ASAP and say, please give it to me in a nutshell, I don't have time right now but do want to give you an answer. I HATE them too because I have a zilch memory and can't be wasting my life on rambling how ever close I am to the person - even my own kids !

I have a relative who loves a voice note. Even more maddeningly she uses it to sort logistics “So I just wanted to talk about Saturday, the kids have swimming at 10 so why don’t you come around ours at 12 and oh by the way can you pick up some bread rolls. Could you also see if XYZ needs a lift?”

It’s infuriating when Saturday rolls around and you need to check what time to arrive and you’ve got to skim through a voice note for the details.

None of my friends family use them, fortunately!

i hate voice notes. Happily so far, only one person does this and I listen to them at the fastest speed although I also have to put them on loud speaker so I can do other things. I want to get it over with as soon as possible.

Voicenotes are so millennial and indulgent. I also ignore them, to me they are an indicator of the sender being a my time is more valuable than yours.

Just tell her you don't listen to them. I already hate voicemail. If my friends started on the voice notes, I'd be annoyed.

Wassap have a transcribe option. I use it as have a few people who prefer voice notes. It's great. The voice note appears and 'transcribe' clicky is underneath it.
Go to chats and settings and turn on Transcribe for voice notes.

Then you have a message to read instead.

if you keep saying ‘sorry I’m in wherever I can’t listen right now’ she’ll finally get it. I don’t know that I’d trust techy options as you might take up a word wrong and that could change the meaning for you. Rowan Atkinson has a good clip on it he says the sender thinks they’re helping but it’s actually only helpful for them and a little selfish as they’re putting the work into the recipient

A lovely friend of mine does this. I can never understand a word of it. I've told her this several times. But she continues to do it.
It's affected our closeness somewhat.
I don't even play them anymore and contact her when I get a moment.

i totally get you! I have a friend who does it especially when she has a problem or needs help and they are like 6 mins long often in working day. I have to leave a meeting just to go out to check it. My sis also does it and always leaves me messages saying call me back when you can. Honestly drives me bananas!

I used to send them to DD because I didn’t want to write an essay but she said to me, Mum, stop it. Either keep it short or ring me later! I haven’t sent one since.