I find that a minority, when hearing that, instinctively take a step left before realizing that they need to move to the right.
I find that a minority, when hearing that, instinctively take a step left before realizing that they need to move to the right.
Maybe you want to understand when foreigners start talking, then the first few syllables are usually not understandable. This is a natural thing. The hearing needs to adapt to the unknown voice, and then the understanding can start.
So if somebody yells at me from behind “xxx yyy left” I would first slow down a little (because yelling creates some feeling of alarm, and slowing down is simply the automatic way to increase safety) and then I would look to my left in order to find out what that person might have been trying to tell me.
A greeting formula like “Hello”, or whatever is common in your region, is helpful for this acoustic adaption. And of course it is the way to start any communication in a friendly and respectful way. Leave it away and you are rude, automatically.
If you don’t care being rude (like some of the comments seem to suggest), it is still a good idea to always speak a few more syllables. The last ones will be understood better.