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A lot of what I do is done as an alternative to doing what I see being done which I do not like doing, cannot do myself or would prefer if no-one did.

I don't like drawing attention to myself either with loud or shiny clothing, loudness of the voice or ostentation of action; people I notice in this way are usually annoying me when so doing. I therefore wear background-coloured practical clothing, keep my voice down and stand quietly in the corner (listening and watching) both literally and metaphorically. I don't like it when people stop suddenly or stand in the middle of the pavement to gawp or chat so I try to be aware of the people around me when walking around and stand at the side of a path or pavement if I stop. As a cyclist who gets irritated by motorists attempting to kill me I make certain I abide by the rules of the road so that if anything happens it will clearly have been the motorist's fault. I dislike the behaviour of drunken people (and their self-pitying whining the following morning) so take care to never get into such a state that I lose control of my actions (or exceed my liver's design limitations). I am concerned at how easily people seem to let their lives be dictated by the whims of atmospheric pressure, air temperature and level of precipitation and so just head outside and try and enjoy the outside irrespective of whether it's trying to burn me, blow me over, freeze me or pour stuff down the back of my neck.

As I walk fairly quickly I can have a fairly noisy footstep at times (or a footsqueak depending on the footwear) but I will walk more carefully if in a quiet place in order to not disrupt the quietness. If I'm walking along a street at night and find that I'm approaching a lone woman I'll cross the street or take an alternative route if possible to pass or overtake them. I'll try not to pass too close to the entrances to shops in case someone is about to emerge and will look both ways before exiting one myself or cutting across the pavement to enter a doorway. Inside shops I will take notice of where other people are in relation to me and move out of the way if it looks like they're looking to look past me or at something of which I am in the way. Standing in a museum or gallery I'll position myself so that I can read the information and see the thing whilst not preventing other people from reading and seeing.

Although my neighbours have occasionally been excessively loud excessively late I'll be quiet late at night rather than get back at them using their methods.

A lot of behaviour is instinctive or hard-wired or otherwise initiated without conscious control. It doesn't mean it has to remain out of conscious control. I'm sure there's a lot of defending-the-territory going on when people behind the wheels of cars get aggressive and shouty but it doesn't mean the aggression can't be tempered with a little concern for the safety of yourself and everyone else in the potential path of a ton of metal. When an attractive woman walks past the reflex to turn the head can happen before you know it but the head can quite easily be returned to its starting position (and the eyes pulled back up) without the twenty-second delay popular amongst wearers of fluorescent jackets. The feedback loop whereby two people on the phone to each other keep raising their voices until both are shouting can easily be broken if one just thinks for a moment.

A lot of it just comes down to wanting to be polite. I like it when I can make people laugh or smile so try to avoid making people curse and glower. They do enough of that themselves.