I suppose this has happened to all of us.  You find a voicemail has been left for you.  Upon listening to it, you wade through lots of “um..” and “ah…”, as the caller’s thought processes are revealed in more detail than you ever wanted to experience.  Then, at the end, they leave their call-back number… at light speed!  So, while you could easily skip the bulk of the message, the single most important part of it is rushed and unintelligible even after repeated playbacks.  The caller has therefore failed in their most basic task; to obtain a call back from you.  Oh sure, they know their number by heart, but you don’t, or they wouldn’t need to leave it, would they?

This has bugged me for years, and so whenever I leave a message, and get to that all important point, I consciously slow down when I leave my number.  I doubt anybody notices, or appreciates the little gesture, but it makes me feel like a better human being.