What It Means To Get “Left On Read” (A Helpful Guide)

What It Means To Get “Left On Read” (A Helpful Illustrated Guide)

We’ve all done it before, quickly looked at text messages and figured we’d respond later. Or we simply weren’t interested in speaking to the person who was texting us. Admit it, getting left on read sucks. Those damn read receipts often cause more harm than good. Our imagination comes up with all sorts of scenarios as to why we haven’t received a response from the very person we’d want a text back from. But what exactly does it mean to get “left on read”?

Now let’s be honest, no one enjoys being “left on read”. In most cases, It’s the equivalent of telling someone “what you have to say isn’t important” or it’s a blatant “f**k off, I have better things to do.” It can feel like complete disrespect, and why shouldn’t it? You’ve taken your time to message this person and in some cases, full novels. Only to feel disrespected because you didn’t get a response. If I could track the issue back. I would say it started when iMessage became the most popular messaging platform. We thought it’d be amazing. Turns out it wasn’t as wonderous as we imagined.

How to Deal with a F**k N*gga in 2019

The real question is, how do you avoid it? Well, there’s two answers to that question. The first is, you just turn the damn feature off. I mean it’s not rocket science. If you don’t want someone to know you’ve read their message, just turn off read receipts. It’ll save you a lot of problems down the line. Your other option is to only have it turned on for specific people. If you like the feature that much, you can be selective about it. I personally only have it turned on for three people.

Firstly, to be fair, sometimes people just forget to respond. I’m guilty of it at times. There have been moments where I got a message and immediately afterward something else caught my attention. Or I thought I already responded and forgot to hit send (yes that happens) but it doesn’t mean I’m intentionally ignoring the sender. If you aren’t trying to get “left on read” here are a few things you can do. Especially if you’re trying to get the attention of a significant other.

be interesting

Honestly, this should go without saying but some of yall are so damn dry. Why would anyone want to respond to your messages? You’re asking the same questions and there’s nothing about you that inspires the party on the other end to want to respond to whatever you have to say. Do some research, find out what they’re into and what they enjoy doing when they’re free. That alone could spark their interest enough to want to talk to you more.

ask quality questions

Nothing will get you left on read faster than a close-ended question. So try your best to ask open-ended questions. Make them think about their responses. People are tired of the same lame-ass questions “what’s your sign” and “what’s your favorite color” please don’t be that guy or girl. If you want to spark interest, ask them what they’ve listened to or watched this past month that they enjoyed and could recommend for you to check out. Anything.. Just avoid asking things they’ve likely been asked before. It’ll be a breath of fresh air.

just make the call

We live in a generation where texting is everything. We text directions, we text advice, we even go as far as to text our feelings. Things are far less personal than they were just 15 years ago. When I was in school, if you wanted to talk to someone and tell them how you felt. You’d have to call or see them in person. If you wanted to link with friends, you set up a place to meet and that was that. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again. Emotions don’t translate well over texting. So if you dislike being left on read, just call or meet in person. It’s hard to get ignored when you’re right in front of the person.

If none of these steps work for you. It might just be that he or she isn’t that into you. Yes, it’s a hard pill to swallow but you’ll be far better turning your attention towards someone who shows you genuine interest. That way they’ll be just as excited to talk to you as you are to them. I don’t have all the answers but I know that wasting your time on the wrong people ain’t worth it. So best of luck to you.