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Sharing Is Not Just for Social Media

    
I recently sent a proposal to a client and awaited her response on a tight deadline.  I didn't impose the deadline; she did.  Her situation was at crisis level, and she needed my help with some staff issues.  She also said she needed me there in a matter of days.  My proposal included a longer-term fix to the acute situation and would require more than a day in the office with her team.  After about a week, I contacted her back by email to follow-up on whether she had approved the proposal.  She replied promptly stating she was still working on getting signatures from other persons in the office.  Another week went by and still no word.  At this point was the time at which she'd requested I be there.  I sent her another email checking on the status of the approval.  She did not respond.  I let two days lapse, and I sent another email.  No response.  Finally two days more, and I placed a phone call.  I got her voicemail and left a message.  Days passed and no response.
     At this point, I assumed she'd changed her mind about using my services and had chosen to go with another training and coaching company.  I decided not to make a nuisance of myself (after five attempts at getting an answer you become a pest) so I abandoned pursuit and left the matter alone.  Then abruptly about a week later she has her assistant call me to work out the dates for my impending arrival the following week.  I was confused.  I wasn't planning on coming out there.  What was she talking about?  The assistant went on about modifying some of the dates in the proposal and asked if I could extend my stay on the first trip and if I could meet them at their downtown office rather than the satellite office and so on and so on.  She spoke as if we'd been talking about this all along, and we were just tidying up the details.  I informed her that I had no idea what she was talking about because this was the first I'd heard that I was going to be working with them.
     This isn't the first time the company has operated in this manner with me.  I presume they tend to operate this way with most of the business they do.  Much is last minute, and there is a scarcity of communications going on in the course of planning.  My schedule did not permit me to show up at the time I had originally proposed because they were past the deadline, and there was too little follow-up on their part to have me reserve the time.  We eventually worked it out, and I was able to accommodate them.  But limited or no communication poses a challenge for everyone involved, especially those who have responsibilities in the situation.  Like too much communication can be overkill, not enough can create craters in productivity and progress.  People have to know what's going on.  It is important to keep every pertinent person in the loop on what's important to them and the entire department and/or organization.  Neglecting to respond to emails, requests, deadlines, and other correspondence is not only rude and unprofessional, but it keeps others in the dark when they need to be included.  Ask yourself:  are you communicating enough?  If you're not sure, keep these three things in mind:
     1.  Always ask:  Who needs to know?  Who needs to be in on this?
     2.  Prioritize what you need to respond to so that you're responsive to the most important issues first.  But remember this doesn't give you a pass to ignore all other contacts made to you.
     3.  Then ask:  What needs to be conveyed?  What's important enough that it has to be shared?
     These aren't the only steps, but they're a good start.  Begin here and watch how much more informed you will be as well.

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