Pick up the Phone | By Dave Moura, Owner and President
Although I still consider myself a fairly young guy, today’s methods of communicating are proving me wrong, LOL. First voicemail, then email and now texting has taken over. It seems that everyone wants to avoid talking. I’m still convinced that over 50% of communication is nonverbal. I remind my kids about the importance of a good handshake and eye contact when introducing themselves. Perhaps I should be warning them about the dangers of using ALL CAPS instead.
In business, we should strive to understand our clients fully. What is really important to them? What absolutely cannot happen during their project? Their reactions to these types of questions help us to understand. When issues arise during a project, we need to help solve the problem and keep the job on track. Only a conversation will quickly identify the most critical issue and resolution. Unfortunately, this often doesn’t happen and instead, we see a never-ending trail of email. Worse, because it is so easy to “cc” everyone we know, we involve people who don’t need to be bothered and often can’t help. This just over complicates the situation, making it difficult to resolve. Result: No solution and lots of distracted minds. Next time you get that email or text, pick up the phone.
Simple rules for email and text…
Email:
Used for exchanging documents
Sending items that are not critical and can be dealt with at a later time
Making appointments
Communication between multiple people of items to be discussed later
Text:
Confirming dates or times
Reminders
Questions requiring simple answers (Yes / No)
Fun Stuff
For anything else, give me a call or let’s get together.
