You have to respond
"Bosses who don't listen (respond) will eventually be surrounded by people who have nothing to say." Unknown
I'm not sure how many Rush (rock band) fans there are subscribed to my blog, but the line, "if you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice." always speaks to me as a leader and a decision maker. It reminds me that I must make a decision, even if it is not to act. And there are consequences for not acting. Translated here, if you do not respond you still have communicated.
I always feel compelled to respond when someone communicates with me through whatever means - mainly phone, email, and social media. Indeed I'll ignore spam messages which are pretty obvious even as crafty and devious as the senders are getting. Spam usually starts with, "Hey Robert." I go by Rob for those who know me - an immediate warning sign. Or someone tries to connect with me on LinkedIn and has one of those titles which reeks with, 'I'm coming to sell you something' not build a relationship for mutual benefit. Don't be that guy!
Respond. Send something back to those who take the time to reach out to you. Even if you do not have bandwidth to give, give them something. It's just good manners. Like you, I get buried in messages but I'm able - eventually, to get a response to someone. I may offer initial responses such as, "Thanks (name). Let me follow up." or "I've got this. Back to you ASAP." This applies even when you must decline an offer. Some believe no response is sufficient but I believe it to be impolite. I've had proposals sent to my business which I decide against. I take the time to communicate instead of leaving someone wondering. I sure appreciate it when someone extends that courtesy to me. You can use out of office notifications but here is how I feel about them.
I do not claim flawlessness in this space. I'm sure I've ignored many a person or team. It does weigh on my conscious though. While writing this blog, I remembered a proposal I had not responded to and I took the time to send a note back. This is my main point. Let the messages of others weigh on your consciousness. It's good leadership.
I'm going to listen to "Free Will" by Rush this morning and I'll be thinking of those people or teams I need to respond to.
Make it Personal!
Rob
Rob Campbell