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"I sent him an email and never heard back."
I didn't respond immediately, and my intern just waited. I had asked her why there had been no progress on a simple project I had given her – lock down a contract for a hotel meeting.
I looked at her, and with my most sincere and patient voice, I asked her, "Well, did you try calling him?"
"No, I guess I'll do that." Roll of the eyes. "People are so stupid sometimes."
It's amazing how many student leaders think that issuing one email is the sum of the effort they can be expected to put forth when it comes to communication. They send one email, and then throw their hands in the air. "I tried!"
There are lots of reasons why sending out one email (or heaven forbid, one text message) is not a sufficient effort. Many people ignore emails, or check them infrequently. Some people read an email, and forget to act on it. If you hit someone with an email at a busy time, they will barely notice it.
Then, there are people like me who receive 250 emails a day and have a hard time acting on each one. Some people like email, and some don't. Some prefer other methods of communication, and when it's you that has the need, you better be prepared to try several.
I experience this phenomenon on a regular basis with our customers. I have one customer who refuses to answer a phone call, but I can text a message, and she immediately replies. I have another who simply will not reply to an email, but if I take a piece of paper and write "PLEASE CALL ME! I NEED TO TALK TO YOU FOR 2 MINUTES!" and fax it to her, I'll hear from her within 10 minutes.
I have one customer who is only reachable via Yahoo Instant Messenger. I never used it, but you can bet I downloaded it because I knew it was the best way to reach her.
Now, I could piss and moan about it, but that wouldn't achieve my goal of speaking to her about business on an occasional basis. I haven't made desktop instant messaging my dominant method of communication, but she and I communicate regularly because I know how to best reach her when I need her.
It's about finding out how your people communicate, and getting the messages to them. You need to have multiple approaches until you find what works. Some people respond better to a phone call or voice mail. Some seem to only reply to text messages. Others need a face-to-face communication, with an email reminder. Great communicators know that getting the word out requires more than one method.
A day later, my intern returned. " He didn't return my message. We're screwed," she said.
"OK, then," I replied. "Please check into the cost of hiring a single engine plane to fly over the hotel pulling a banner message. I think one or two passes should do it, but see if the pilot has some sort of minimum."
She just looked at me.
"Or you could just drive over to the hotel and ask for him at the front desk."
Imagine you want to have a committee meeting with short notice. You must reach out to people in multiple ways in order to get them there. Sending one email, then whining when you're sitting at the table alone is not a sign of unmotivated people. It's a sign that you need to work on your communication skills. It's a sign that you need to try a little harder.
Two emails, two text messages, three face-to-face requests, three handwritten notes, 10 phone calls, six carrier pigeons, and one singing telegram. Then, we'll talk.
In the meantime, get me the number of that airplane pilot.
