Photo credit to Bruno Cervera
After joining AIESEC, my life now involves a lot more "formal" communication than it did before. One of my coworkers said something that will probably stay with me forever.
If you want to get something done, then call.
I didn't think much of what she said at first, but as I've had to get stuff done ASAP, calling has become my new favourite method of getting stuff done.
Yep, an Estonian who likes social interaction. I'd be surprised too.
Reason #1 - Slow.
You might think that it'll save you time if you just send an email instead of a call, but in almost all cases it won't save time. When you call, the time is concentrated into a smaller period of time, but an email spreads it out over a much longer period of time. This larger timeframe can get really frustrating really quickly.
It also takes a longer to properly answer emails, picking and choosing the exact phrasing to give off the right tone which could actually be handled by your voice during a call.
Email is a very slow method of communication.
Reason #2 - Ineffective.
Almost all email clients are horrible when it comes to good user experience. They often don't make any sense and conversations can easily get lost or misplaced. The best email interface I've seen so far is Inbox by Google.
When it comes to designing email interfaces, humans fucked up.
Email conversations are messy and small details can easily be missed, making this method of communication especially ineffective for a longer form of detailed communication. The more to the point and shorter an email is, the better the email is.
Reason #3 - Overload.
Imagine this actually happening.
Remember that scene from Harry Potter? I'd say it's actually a really good example of what an email inbox is like. The incoming mail just won't damn stop. It's simply overwhelming and keeping up with it is nearly impossible.
Keeping this in mind, it's easy to see how email can be very overwhelming and why it might not be the best medium when you're trying to get stuff done.
Conclusion
Call, don't expect answers to emails. It's the snail mail of the 21st century.
Call to Action
Do you have any frustrating examples of "a quick email" gone horribly wrong?
I could not agree more. Me and few of my friends are hosting a local gaming party and we were searching for sponsors ourselves. We sent out about 30 emails and only ONE came back with a positive answer. Then we decided to call the next place and it came back with the positive answer the first time.
Also phone call or eye-to-eye meeting creates a better atmosphere, you can actually hear their voice and get emotions etc.
Good read.
Definitely. I've also heard this from Simon Sinek, who brought up an example of replying to emails with calls and then sending a follow-up email to confirm what was said on the phone. This act would create a better, deeper connection between the two people.
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