Why most of the most organized people fail to organize incoming calls on their mobile phone is a mystery that I have not been able to understand so far.
Someone calls you up when you are attending an important meeting, and you, without a second thought, disconnect the call instantly. Unfortunately, it happens with me almost every day; most of the time when I call up my clients.
Your action is justified because you can't take the call for obvious reasons. But, then, is call rejection the only solution, or could there be a more civilized way of letting the other person know that you are busy?
Yes, there is!
Most of the smartphones invariably have an in-built call filtering program. It offers you several options in terms of either keeping your phone on mute mode, or you can form multiple groups in accordance with your call receiving preferences.
I have been using this call filtering app on my BlackBerry handset for a long time and, till date, never disconnected an incoming call.
You know why?
Because, psychologically, disconnection means rejection, and humans do find it difficult to digest rejection of any kind even if it's for a valid reason. By rejecting the call, you, in a way, are hurting the caller, and a negative feeling - against you - gets registered in his/her subconscious mind.
To you, it may appear a simple issue, but when it becomes a habit, it has the potential to turn into a critical factor -- spoiling your relationship with a few.
So use call filtering applications without fail and get rid of a peculiar habit of rejecting incoming calls on your mobile phone.
Author: Abhijit Kar, Managing Partner, Win & Victory Retained Search. Read more articles on my blog: 'The Warrior.' Google my name to search it out.
From India, Delhi
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1Someone calls you up when you are attending an important meeting, and you, without a second thought, disconnect the call instantly. Unfortunately, it happens with me almost every day; most of the time when I call up my clients.
Your action is justified because you can't take the call for obvious reasons. But, then, is call rejection the only solution, or could there be a more civilized way of letting the other person know that you are busy?
Yes, there is!
Most of the smartphones invariably have an in-built call filtering program. It offers you several options in terms of either keeping your phone on mute mode, or you can form multiple groups in accordance with your call receiving preferences.
I have been using this call filtering app on my BlackBerry handset for a long time and, till date, never disconnected an incoming call.
You know why?
Because, psychologically, disconnection means rejection, and humans do find it difficult to digest rejection of any kind even if it's for a valid reason. By rejecting the call, you, in a way, are hurting the caller, and a negative feeling - against you - gets registered in his/her subconscious mind.
To you, it may appear a simple issue, but when it becomes a habit, it has the potential to turn into a critical factor -- spoiling your relationship with a few.
So use call filtering applications without fail and get rid of a peculiar habit of rejecting incoming calls on your mobile phone.
Author: Abhijit Kar, Managing Partner, Win & Victory Retained Search. Read more articles on my blog: 'The Warrior.' Google my name to search it out.
From India, Delhi
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Dear Abhijit,
My views are a little different.
My clients, current or prospective, also reject calls. But then, what is there to get dejected about? When I conduct the training, I also do the same thing! Attending meetings, conferences, or some important work is the order of the day. It is not possible to take every call right at that moment, nor do I expect that from the other party.
However, what goes against business etiquette is not calling back or sending an SMS expressing your inability to take the call.
There is a provision for an auto-response through SMS as well. However, it could be a costly solution depending on the tariffs of the mobile service provider.
The No. 1 trouble in India is that our incoming calls are not chargeable. Earlier, incoming calls on mobiles were chargeable but not after 2003. TRAI has removed charges on incoming calls this year, and we, the garrulous Indians, have become even more garrulous. Imagine if TRAI gives the option or authority to Telecom companies to levy charges on incoming calls. Would you have the same opinion or even grudge for rejecting the call?
I have not been to the USA, but those who have been there told me that since incoming calls are chargeable, no American prefers to take a call if it is from an unknown caller. For unknown callers, the call goes to voicemail.
I recommend you keep a log and find out how many calls were for worthwhile reasons. If you are a senior person, then tell your subordinates to maintain a similar log. Take feedback from them and find out how many calls had a real purpose and how many were for frivolous reasons. I am confident that the latter will take precedence over the former.
Ok...
Dinesh V Divekar
"Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance."
From India, Bangalore
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My views are a little different.
My clients, current or prospective, also reject calls. But then, what is there to get dejected about? When I conduct the training, I also do the same thing! Attending meetings, conferences, or some important work is the order of the day. It is not possible to take every call right at that moment, nor do I expect that from the other party.
However, what goes against business etiquette is not calling back or sending an SMS expressing your inability to take the call.
There is a provision for an auto-response through SMS as well. However, it could be a costly solution depending on the tariffs of the mobile service provider.
The No. 1 trouble in India is that our incoming calls are not chargeable. Earlier, incoming calls on mobiles were chargeable but not after 2003. TRAI has removed charges on incoming calls this year, and we, the garrulous Indians, have become even more garrulous. Imagine if TRAI gives the option or authority to Telecom companies to levy charges on incoming calls. Would you have the same opinion or even grudge for rejecting the call?
I have not been to the USA, but those who have been there told me that since incoming calls are chargeable, no American prefers to take a call if it is from an unknown caller. For unknown callers, the call goes to voicemail.
I recommend you keep a log and find out how many calls were for worthwhile reasons. If you are a senior person, then tell your subordinates to maintain a similar log. Take feedback from them and find out how many calls had a real purpose and how many were for frivolous reasons. I am confident that the latter will take precedence over the former.
Ok...
Dinesh V Divekar
"Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance."
From India, Bangalore
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Dinesh, personally, I never get dejected but keep highlighting some of the issues that, in my opinion, can be tackled in a mature way. In my article, I have already explained the solution and it doesn't take much time also. Whenever someone doesn't wish to take calls, he or she only has to activate the call filtering program on his mobile. Calls will keep coming but the phone wouldn't ring. Later, looking at the missed call, one may decide whom to call back. When a better way of handling an issue is available, that too free of cost, isn't it wiser to implement it? After all, we, in the corporate world, talk so much about following the best practices. It's my personal opinion, and I may be wrong; just sharing my thoughts.
From India, Delhi
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From India, Delhi
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