Don’t Call Me, I’ll Call You…Maybe

Looks like you might be new here. You can subscribe for free via RSS or Email to make sure you don't miss anything. I really appreciate your visit!

In this day and age of Social Media and online communications, I find it quite disconcerting when someone feels the need to actually call me on a phone. It could just be my anti-social side, but I would much rather a text, email, or even a message on a micro-blogging service.

How many times during the day do you just look at the caller-id and not bother to answer the phone? Especially if it’s a number you don’t recognize. I know I send those straight to voicemail and I’m pretty sure I’ve been sent to voicemail on quite a few occasions.

Not only are phone calls sort of old-fashioned to me, but they take time I think could be spent being more productive. People don’t know how to get off the phone once they get you on it and waste time conveying information that could have taken a fraction of the time by using other means. This can be a serious hit to your productivity.

3 Ways To Avoid Phone Calls

• Instead of immediately returning the call or listening to a voicemail, send an electronic message as a response. Email, SMS, or whatever. This can save time and still allow you to figure out what’s going on.
• If the caller does leave a voicemail, listen to it at a time that is convenient for you. Don’t interrupt your workflow.
• Never answer unknown numbers, ever. You don’t know what’s on the other end of that line. It could be an annoying telemarketer or mother-in-law. You can’t risk the time or stress to investigate, so send it to voicemail.

What To Do With Unknown Numbers

If you don’t recognize the number, you can always use Caller Base.com to figure out who it is. This is a cool service that will look up the name and address of the caller. Now, you can make an educated decision as to whether they’re worth your time or not.

With Caller Base.com, you can look up land-line and cell numbers within the US and Canada with 100% confidentiality. This is great for tracking down pesky bill-collectors, telemarketers and prank callers. This will definitely help you get a leg up on any disruptive phone calls.