Reman U
- Author: Noah Rickun
- Subject Matter: Management
- Issue: Balancing Work with Family
I recently flew from Milwaukee to Minneapolis and then on to Fargo, ND. Each time I landed, I felt my iPhone vibrating in my pocket, indicating that I had received a new voicemail, email or text message. When I pulled out my phone in Minneapolis, I had 17 new emails, 2 voicemails and 3 text messages. That flight was only about 90 minutes. I had a 45-minute layover, so I did my best to return calls and emails, but I didn’t get to them all.
By the time I landed in Fargo I had more emails, 5 text messages and 3 additional voicemails—all in an hour! Half of the messages were people re-sending their original message (perhaps in a different format) because they were upset that I hadn’t responded yet.
Today, my customers, employees and partners expect 24/7 availability. I am connected via email, text messaging, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and four different instant-messaging platforms.
For most people, the added pressure of technology has complicated “The Balancing Act” even more. Everything becomes a trade-off – with only 24 hours a day available (minus a few for sleep), you must choose either to ignore or neglect certain needs. Often, it is family and self-care that get overlooked. It’s an emotional decision that we attempt to rationalize with logic. For example, I’ve found myself thinking, “I’d sure love to work out today, but I’m behind on emails. I’ll do the emails now and work out tomorrow.” Problem is, tomorrow is not any less hectic or task-packed than today.
In the end, I prioritize tasks and work through them one-by-one. Commonly, I do what is expected of me rather than what I think is important. I know that everything I do, I could do better if I were able to devote more time or mental energy to the task at hand.
My major issue centers on the notion of PRESENCE. With an iPhone in my pocket, I am rarely 100% present in any setting. I can’t remember the last time I spent with my daughters where I didn’t have to step away once or twice to respond to an email or voicemail.
The last safe haven (until recently) has been the airplane. That’s always been “me” time – time to reflect, to write, to nap. There are no expectations from outside parties. Until now. Most airlines have launched Wi-Fi on their flights, which puts me right back in touch with everyone, and everyone’s expectation that I will respond within minutes!
The bottom line is this – if you can master the art of being present, quality rules and quantity becomes much less important. One hour of focused time with my children far outweighs four hours of the kids trying to get attention from a distracted daddy. It means much more to all of us.
I have no self-control when it comes to connectivity, so I’ve had to follow some strict rules to keep myself in check. I have found these rules work best:
Blend work and home life – to a degree. Be sure to include your family in major work events and to take time at your office each day to call home once or twice. Bring some work home, but limit the work to specific hours (i.e., after children are sleeping).
Leave your cellphone and laptop in your car when you first get home. Eat dinner with your family and then spend time after with one another BEFORE you even think about getting back to work.
Create a work area (i.e., office) in your home and DO NOT work anywhere else. Don’t answer your cellphone, don’t check your email and don’t respond to text messages unless you are in that work area. Do more work in the early morning rather than at night. Wake up before everyone else in the house rather than staying up late. It’s incredible how much more productive you are after a good night’s rest.
Above all else, remember the age-old question: “Do you live to work, or work to live?” Make a decision and always judge your actions against your priorities.
By no means have I mastered the five steps I laid out above, but I am conscious of my deficiencies and I recognize I have choices. And, just as technology has created new expectations, challenges and additional workload, technology also has created solutions. Currently I am working to leverage technology to help me serve my customers better, faster and more proactively. I figure if I can free my inbox of everything but ORDERS and THANK YOU LETTERS, I’ll be rich and happy.
In the meantime, I have a rule that I ALWAYS follow—ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS respond to EVERY customer contact (whether it be a voicemail, email, instant message, text message or smoke signal) before you go to sleep. Even if it’s 3 AM and the only thing you have the energy to write is, “Hey Mr. Customer, thanks for the email. I wanted to let you know that I received it and that I am working on a great solution for you. I’ll be in touch tomorrow with an idea and answer to every question you’ve asked.” My rule does not result in perfect service, but it works. It puts the customer at ease and it shows them that you care.
BIG TIP: If you send the email late at night (after 10 PM) or early in the morning (before 7 AM), you’ll impress your customer with your dedication. Now, dedicate yourself to responding within an hour and work toward getting there as soon as possible. When you get there, you’ll be hours ahead of where you are now and light years ahead of your competition.
Noah Rickun, aka Captain Reman, is the vice president of sales & distribution at ETE Reman. An aftermarket veteran, Captain Reman is known for sharing his sales, business and customer-service knowledge weekly through the e-newsletter Reman U.
