On Tipping

My definition of a tip: a courteous financial jester towards a service well provided, or to encourage service providers to stick with a positive attitude towards service receivers.

In Egypt, it’s a right and the consequences of not tipping/not tipping enough vary between frowns and verbal abuses. That’s why the best tippers are foreigners; they want to avoid being embarrassed or worse; being abused.

I mean do you tip according to the size of the bill or according to the quality of service provided? Do you tip because you have to and as not to come off as a “cheap”? Do you tip because you are programmed to; conditioned since your early childhood years or out of conviction? The actions of tipping and how much to tip are two tangled issues that comprise a state of discomfort and confusion.

Dwight Shrute from the hit show (The Office) refused to tip a delivery man for the following witty logic:

“Why tip someone for a job I am capable of doing myself? I can deliver food, I can drive a taxi, I can – and do – cut my own hair, I did however tip my urologist, because I am unable to pulverize my kidney stones”.

As funny as that statement sounds; he does have a point .. That’s why I tip according to the quality of service and often out of pity to the less fortunate and underprivileged labors.

I really despise the fact that people expect a big fat tip for a job they are supposed to do. Moreover, In their twisted minds they think they have earned this charitable jester. You don’t earn a tip, you earn a raise, a promotion .. Not a tip. A tip is totally up to the tipper and it’s absolutely a judgment call.

N.B: a Tip disguised as charity is not a tip .