The telephone, invented so long ago by our revered Alexander Graham Bell, seems like old technology by age. And yet, it still connects us all everyday and probably multiple times. The wireless world is slowly creeping up on the old boy's invention but there's an element that just can't be overlooked: Direct Human Interaction. Included in this assessment of information is tone, language, background noise, and attentiveness.We can show Twitter love and links, Facebook friends and follies, however there is nothing more direct and telling than a real-time conversation. There is no delete key, no technological blips or excuses. (We can usually tell when someone is faking the "...psccht...what?...you're breaking up...bad signal here"!)
Part of the power behind Twitter is the capacity for developing relationships, eventually leading to referrals and trusted information sources. A sure way to facilitate this is to pick up the phone. Here are a few conversation starters:
- How does Twitter support what you do?
- What's your biggest challenge?
- Whose tweets do you look forward to the most?
- What kind of information do you generally appreciate?
- How did you get to where you are now?
These questions apply to any kind of networking so use them wherever you meet people. Insert "technology" for Twitter and "tweets" for "information" and you've got a very portable and flexible conversation starter.
Don't hide behind technology. I really encourage you to connect with people you are intrigued or inspired by. Pick up the phone and call. You may be surprised by the impact you create by doing so. As for me, I can be reached at 519-652-2384 EST. I would love to hear from you!
Nimbly,
JCM
3 comments:
Great comment. I'm guilty a lot of the time. So easy to answer emails succinctly and on your own time. Making a call takes more effort for me and in person is often just not possible, but you're so right about that connection.
The effort is worth it.
At the same time, another thing we can all benefit from is to just be yourself in your email and other communications. Too often we're hiding behind some mask. Playing the part of whatever our business role requires of us is important but it's much more rewarding when you're just being real with people.
Great article! And cool to find you here. :)
Peace,
"healingsinger" Brenda MacIntyre,
Medicine Song Woman
You are absolutely right Brenda! Being yourself will take you further and longer than pretending...hmmm is that what some people may be afraid of? Being exposed? Thanks for commenting!
Great Post! It's so important to make that personal connection!
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