DIG BEFORE YOU DIAL
Wednesday, January 11, 2023
We get it – we see those signs saying DIAL BEFORE YOU DIG
On every desktop we should have a sticky-note saying, “Think before you dial” or “Think before you do anything.”
We assume, and I believe this is general, that when we interact with people, they are focused on the
same things we are – they give us their attention when we call or write to discuss something or urge them to move something forward, but that is rarely the case.
Our lives aren’t equal.
The person on the other end of any situation is dealing with our life and a world they couldn’t possibly guess (or fully comprehend if they had all our facts because they wouldn’t understand us, our history/back-story or philosophy), whether or not they wish to advance a discussion at the same moment we do, is highly unlikely.
That person we want to say yes, maybe, or “Let’s meet to discuss this tomorrow” – even if they are so anxious or motivated, have their shop to run, their logistics of work and family on their plate, might have a family member sick, have lost a key employee, or had a death in their family. They might have milestones and deadlines on their must-do-today list or have a workload or backlog we cannot fathom …
Next time we call or write or go to a meeting with someone, we should pause a minute to remember we cannot possibly know what their day might be like or what disruption our tiny interruption might cause.
If we start our thought before the call, our mind settles before we type the first word, let alone dial them up or hit send, ask yourself this question: “How do I best start this so I have the best chance of having a productive conversation or getting a forward-moving-things reply?”
This isn’t a new idea, but it’s hardly practiced at all – I don’t do it enough, and I know from every cold call, email that isn’t a reply to mine, and everything that comes via snail mail it wasn’t thought of at all.
The cold call should not be replaced by the warm call (prepared, stage set, information gathered) but by having a reason, a plan, and which anticipates the reality – you have no idea if it’s a bad time or a good time. The worst I’ve had in a long time was last week; someone I had heard of but never met called me, addressed me by name as if we were old pals, and then told me, “I know you are busy, but I just need 30 seconds of your time to tell you about a great idea that will improve your bottom line.”
Then without hesitating or waiting for me to say, “No, I don’t have time for any idea that can be stated in 30 seconds,” I let him talk and hung up after 30 seconds. He didn’t call a second time. He might have been selling something I wanted, but he didn’t do any digging or thinking before he dialed.