As a MM, you're going to have a lot of exposure to communicating with clients & your fellow co-workers. Here's a simple important reminder - don't be a jackass.This seems really obvious (and it is), but considering all the times I've dealt with someone not following this advice, I'd say its something we can't remind ourselves enough about.
Just the other day I was on a conf call with a 3rd party who really slaughtered this rule. He was almost 20 min late, barely apologized ("sorry for being a few min late!", was all we got), rushed me and my client, and ultimately didn't bring anything good to the conversation (which was supposed to be his lead to begin with).
So here's a few pointers to help me and you distinguish if we're being a jackass and need to course-correct:
- Arrogant: acting like we're important (instead of acting like our client or co-worker is important). This includes not paying attention to what someone is saying and trying to multi-task on a phone call (IM'ing, writing an email, etc. when on a call).
- Know-It-All: dumping a ton of info and facts on someone and not giving them the courtesy to take the time to carefully explain each part of your discussion points or presentation. We also need to give them time to respond and ask questions.
- Name Dropper: don't drop the big name of the last client or person you worked with. That's just artificially elevating yourself. Focus on the person you're talking to.
- Latest Accomplishment: don't tout your latest big accomplishment, especially to a client. Focus on solving the problems and meeting the needs of the current person you're talking to.
- Story One-Up'er: when someone is telling a story, listen, and don't be thinking about the awesome story rattling through your brain you can't wait to tell them when they get done. Let their story take the limelight and don't try and finish off with an even better story to steal their thunder. This one is harder to spot than you think.
- How Busy You Are: don't talk about how busy you are, unless directly asked because you've been hard to get a hold of. If you do admit you're busy, say it as more of an apology or letting them know its a problem you need to solve. Don't brag about it. You need to be communicating that you're interested in your client and co-worker at the moment.
1 comments:
man, this is great. I find myself doing the story one-up'er a lot way too often. I'm a a Jackass! Thanks for pointing it out.
I think all too often we forget that people don't care about us. They care about themselves. So instead of making ourselves look important, we need to focus on making our clients and employees feel important - oh, and THEY ARE! without them, we are all out of a job!!
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