The other day I noticed that I am not very good at small talk, particularly if I am talking on the phone. If I'm making a phone call for a particular purpose, such as calling to schedule a visiting teaching appointment, get a substitute for RS, etc, I tend to just address the necessities and end the phone call. I don't even really give the person much of a chance to say anything beyond yes, no, or maybe.
I don't mean to be rude. I think I just tend to operate on a "get down to business" model. However, after several different phone calls recently where I just was about getting the facts spit out and resolution/conclusion made, I realized that this may come across to other people as rude and that I don't have time for them. And I felt badly about the message that I was inadvertantly sending.
So, I'm going to try and do better at offering bits of small talk when it is clear that the other participant wants to talk. I'm going to slow down and try to appear not so rude. Unless you are a phone solicitor, then I'll just cut you off.
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