Coaching Millennials to Improve Their Phone Skills

It’s no secret young people prefer texting to talking on the phone. One reason for this is that how you present yourself is more scrutinized today than ever before. We’re a detail-oriented society. Everything from our vocal pitch to our fluctuating diction gets put under the microscope. At least with texting and e-mail you get a degree of control over how you look to others. There’s no spontaneity in text. Why risk saying the wrong thing in the heat of the moment?

Now this excuse anybody from having lackluster phone skills. Far from it. Kim Lachance Shandrow, writing over at Entrepreneur, explains that knowing how to work a phone conversation is an imperative for many white collar jobs:

“Getting what you want out of phone conversations — especially those of the sales and business meeting variety — requires careful timing and social dexterity. It’s like dancing with someone else, a game of give and take.”

That’s why, in the piece linked above and below, Shandrow offers a quick and basic crash course in the art of talking on the phone. She even provides the most millennial-friendly mode of explanation: an infographic. Shandrow delves into the nuances of phone call purpose, expressing body language through speech, and (most important) how to listen and what to listen for.

Check out the piece (linked again below) and let us know what you think.