How to Stop Procrastinating and Pick Up the Phone
Yet more good stuff from Gretchen Rubin, author of the Happiness Blog:
“Tips for making phone calls that you don’t want to make:”
- "The night before, make a list of the calls to be made, along with names, phone numbers, and any other necessary information."
- "If you’re making some kind of pitch or argument, rehearse in your mind what you want to say. Have an outline to make sure you hit the important points once the call begins."
- "If you want to set up appointments, have some convenient times in mind."
- "As soon as you get to your desk in the morning, pick up the phone and start dialing. No procrastinating, or you may never begin."
- "Stand up while you talk."
- "Smile and use a friendly tone."
- "If you have more than one call to make, don’t hang up the phone when the first call is over. Keep the phone at your ear and use your finger to disconnect the call."
I’ve found that first bullet item to be quite effective. It’s amazing how much harder it is to procrastinate when you’ve got the numbers and info at the ready.
My favorite quote on procrastination wouldn’t fly with the productivity gurus, and it flies in the face of the advice given here, but we do value irreverence here on the Agent Blog, particularly the Twainian variety, so here it is:
Never put off until tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow– Mark Twain
