General

I was surprised to see a client mention this to me the other day:

“I wanted to say thank you for being so prompt and thorough and ‘on top of it all’ with your responses. That seems to be a rarity in business these days.”

A rarity? Really?

My surprise was not that I was prompt. I pride myself on being prompt with clients. The surprise was that it seemed like a rarity. Why?!

This topic falls under the umbrella of communication that I alluded to in a previous blog about critical skills in running a voiceover business. One of those tips includes email communication so I wanted to elaborate.

How Prompt Is Prompt?

Please don’t get me wrong. I get it. Folks are busy for a whole host of reasons. Works happens. Emergencies happen. Life happens. There are times when a quick reply is just not possible. People have more pressing matters to attend to. So do I. But how prompt is prompt? What is prompt to you or me? It varies of course.

Of course there are extenuating circumstances that prevent replying. I would not expect anyone to pull their car over or step away from dinner that instance. However, Grammarly’s Email Etiquette says replying within 24 hours is a “common courtesy.” Longer than that is preceived as “rude.” We should always consider normal “business” hours and days as well. I would not expect replies on a weekend or holiday.

In my voiceover work and project management role in website development, I always tell my clients that I am usually same-day reply. I also tell them that if it’s more than a day, then I am really busy. If it’s more than two days, then something either happened to me, or I didn’t get it. Aside from a holiday or busy weekend, I have adhered to same-day replies.

Communication Has Never Been Easier

Communicating with others has never been easier. Cell phones put email, texting, message apps in the palm of your hand. There really is no excuse. I currently manage three email platforms, Whatsapp, Slack, texting, and even Facebook Instant Messenger for work and other professional purposes. I also have all of these on my phone. There is NO excuse that I cannot reply to anyone at anytime. Unless of course, I don’t have phone service/internet, or I’m sleeping.

But to let a message and a professional request go unanswered just opens the door to speculation from the sender that they are not important enough or are just being ignored. How else are they to know otherwise?

Some messages may simply be missed. With crazy filled inboxes, yes, messages can get lost in the mix. However, the lack of prompt replies on a regular basis is simply unprofessional.

Clients Deserve The Courtesy Of Prompt Replies

If someone were to ask you,”Would you rather be quick or accurate?”, what would you say? My answer is always the same, quick. Urgency seems to me to outweigh accuracy. I want to show urgency to clients. I want to make the client feel like they are my only priority to help them get their project done. Clients have timelines too. Quick answers can help them make decisions and manage their projects so much easier. They deserve the same prompt reply that I would expect from others. I consider it a professional courtesy that I extend to everyone.

Another reason I prefer urgency, is that you can still be accurate. You do not need to sacrifice accuracy. Being accurate is great; however, the sense of urgency is lost forever if that answer is delayed. Speculation and wonder creep in the longer a request or question is delayed. This doesn’t mean your answer has to be wrong. Even if you need more time for a more accurate response, a simple acknowledgement that a message is received and being followed up with is a comfort to the sender. It is peace of mind knowing their request did not float off into email-land somewhere.

A Professional Courtesy Deserves To Be Reciprocated

Seeing an email lingering in my inbox unanswered drives me nuts. I can’t stop thinking about it until I can address it. Perhaps it’s part of my OCD, but there is another reason. Professional courtesies tend to be reciprocated. In many of my activities, I try to lead by example. If I extend the courtesy of prompt replies, then hopefully I get it in return. I expect it more with co-workers and internal communications than I do with clients.   Do I expect it all the time. No. But it is nice.

I know I am not changing the world with this post. But if basic professional courtesies are dwindling, perhaps a friendly reminder is necessary. We’re reminded about everything else online, so why not this? If you have any comments, let me know. Just don’t delay, ok?

When I was kid, I remember going to my dad’s office in Burlington, MA at the FAA center. He had a desk in the corner overlooking the office plaza. I also remember seeing this sign on his desk and laughing at the time. Yes, his desk was a mess!

But years after his passing and going through some of his things, I came across the sign. It’s now on my desk as a reminder of his hard work and his easy-going sense of humor. But every time I look at it now, I’m conflicted.

Why? Because my desk is clean and clutter-free! A laptop, extra monitor, microphone, lamp, pen and paper….and now, a sign. Soooo, is that a bad thing? Does that mean I have an empty mind? Well, I’m sure I’ve had those times where some would think so but it can mean a whole different mindset.

BECOMING CLUTTER-FREE

Admittedly, my room growing up was pretty messy, but over the years, I gradually shifted to having less and less items around me.  Maybe it was the military part of my wife and I after moving so many times. I may have already been a little OCD, but it was certainly amplified during the military. Perhaps it was more of a dislike for the cluttered house we had growing up. We weren’t hoarders but you certainly had to dig through a lot of stuff to get what you needed – if you could even find it. I don’t ever recall the stairwell NOT having a bunch of miscellaneous stuff on at least a few steps. Talk about a tripping hazard.

Through dorm life, I enjoyed showing off a lot of nick-nacks and fun stuff in my dorm rooms but  things were fairly organized. Even transitioning to homes, our style continued to shift to less and less stuff.

NOT EMPTY, JUST SIMPLIFIED

To me, clutter is stressful. Too much stuff staring me in the face distracts me from my work. Staying organized is critically important to me. Even if I have a lot of stuff, knowing where I can find it – and quickly – helps me do my job much quicker and easier. Why make finding things

There is something to be said about maintaining spaces that put your mind at ease so that you can focus on the task at hand.  You can still have plenty of thoughts and ideas floating around but knowing I can focus on following through with those ideas quicker and easier, and in more relaxed surroundings, is worth…

Clutter-free is sanity for us.  Why make finding a simple item so difficult when it is buried in a room or closet? Of all the talk these days about shedding negativity in one’s life – how about shedding the stress of clutter and disarray?

My wife and I enjoy having a clutter-free living areas in the house. We’ve been spending a big part of this season going through tubs and boxes from the basement and storage areas and finally lifting the burden of having it all pile up.  While we see more space opening up, we’re also rediscovering old momentos and sentimental items that we haven’t seen in years.

Furthermore, all of the unused items in our house are being given to new homes or donated to organizations who could use them. Some of my old flying gear is being donated to a local flying school. Online town pages are a great way to help your neighbors without tossing things in the trash.

My mind is cluttered with all sorts of things too, but there is something to be said about working smarter, not harder too. And having a clear desk or work area so that I can focus on the task at hand is just as smart.

So with an even more clutter-free home and a nice, clean desk, I stare at this sign and believe that, NO, an empty desk does not signify an empty mind. It’s a more efficient mind.

When I hear people tell their tales of unpleasant work situations or client interactions that got out of control, I empathize with them. I’ve been through it too and can relate. Customer service and client relations are not easy. But I also think in the back of my mind that almost every scenario that I hear about was PREVENTABLE!

For example, when working as a team lead at a local college, one of my academic advisors was dealing with a student that was upset about an enrollment change due to an academic policy. I asked the advisor if he made the student aware of the policy beforehand as our guidelines stated. He didn’t. When I asked why, he said he didn’t think it was necessary at the time. Despite specific student orientation guidelines, this particular advisor wasn’t proactive enough to prevent this from happening. And now he had an angry student on his hands and our reputation on the line all because he cut corners to either save himself time, ignorance, arrogance, or whatever.

I can’t tell you how many client interactions I’ve seen and heard from other folks that provide only partial information and never a full, comprehensive explanation. They often don’t anticipate follow-up questions. And I have heard phone calls and orientations that completely glossed over important process or policy details – and then they wonder why the student or client ran into a roadblock on these very issues later on.

So how can you avoid this? Be proactive.

I pride myself on being proactive. I wasn’t always this way and had to learn some tough lessons with situations I could’ve easily prevented. So it has been my crusade to be proactive to AVOID these situations and to help others do the same. I found that these tips on being proactive at work are exactly what I do. #9 is my favorite – Anticipating Problems and Problem Solving.

A “Tried & True” Motto To Live By

As a team lead at an online college and now as a voiceover and project manager now, my motto has been and always will be:

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

This might’ve been something your parents told you as a kid, but this applies to almost every aspect of business operations – risk management, quality and supply chain management, project management, you name it! Does the 80/20 Pareto principle sound familiar? 80% of the problems can be resolved by 20% prevention.

Often-times when a situation arises, teams discuss it, and work on a solution; however, nothing is done to prevent it from happening again! Like the article says, “troubleshoot problems and identify when they started, diagnose and find the underlying cause quickly.”

But the next step is the most important! “Develop steps for either preventing problems from reoccurring or steps for handling problems when they occur again.” Bingo!

Do Something About It!

After encountering system constraints myself, I simply started looking at a process and making note of all the pain points along the way. I then addressed each of those points going forward. Don’t put it aside, don’t wait for someone else to do it, and don’t think that the client will somehow figure it out on their own. Put it on paper, in an email, in a team chat, in a company-wide document or policy or procedure, make a quick training or tutorial video or an FAQ – and spread the word to co-workers! Just do something about it!

Over the years, my communication in particular with clients, students, advisors, has become more and more robust to address as many possible pain points as possible. Are my emails lengthy? Yes! But they address critical processes and information that they will need along the way.  Do people read it all? Maybe. Maybe not. But I’d much rather inform the client with preventable advice up front, than to deal with massive email chains and frustration later on. Plus, it’s a much needed paper trail that folks can refer to.

Are the policies and procedures that I develop a lot to read? Yes. But I’d rather point to a document or policy than to keep explaining myself over and over again. All the points in my emails and procedures are there for a reason. Referring to my advice is much easier than dealing with the bickering and arguing that is sure to follow otherwise.

If folks want to risk saving a little extra time and energy not covering critical information up front, and then battle it out later on when clients say “I didn’t know” or “you didn’t tell me”, well, good luck with that.

WORK SMARTER, NOT HARDER

For me, I’d rather work smarter, not harder. I’d much rather take the time to lay everything out up front than to deal with the situation spiraling out of control had I just mentioned something early on. I’m happier and more prideful about my work, the client is much happier and appreciates the help, and the process goes much smoother. Does the process take more time up front? Yes, but as the saying goes, slow is smooth, and smooth is fast. This avoids the headache, the heartache, and the loss of sleep.

Being proactive and putting the effort in on that “ounce of prevention” will eventually lead to happier clients and more pride in what you do.

CTV – “Tried & True”