Anyone else this resonate with?
or - the other side of the coin - I get a call from a number I don't know, opt to ignore it, figuring "if it's important they'll leave a voice mail." They never leave one. But if they did, would I even listen?
Also:
- "The fact that we have four generations in the workplace, and they're going to be there for some time, the younger generations — the millennials, the Y generation — they're going to need to adapt," Napier-Fitzpatrick says.
I don't agree. I think we see email WAY more frequently than phone calls and certainly voice mails nowadays. Seems to me like the older generation is adapting, not the young one. I have coworkers my parents' age who email over call people, every day.
It does depend on your business setting - I worked at another company, much smaller, that was very call-centric. That's where I learned that sometimes you can get a lot more information, and more quickly, if you call someone. But here, no one ever calls. In fact, my phone number and voice mail were disabled here at work because I never used them.
Google Voice has solved my problems entirely. I can't stand voicemails. Now I get them transcribed to text automatically and then delete them. You know what I found out? 100% of them are completely useless crap. Telemarketers, butt dials, drunks calling the wrong number, fake bill collector scams. If I'm ever getting an important call, I'm going to either know who's calling, or they're going to get a hold of me in other ways. It's not a useful technology anymore.
Why just millenials? I'm GenX and it breaks down to this: 1) You call. This means that either (a) you know me and want to talk (b) you don't know me and are calling from a business. 2A) I know your number. This means that either (a1) I have time to talk and will (b1) I don't have time and we both know that you can text me with anything important. 2B) I don't know your number. This means that either (a2) you are soliciting business and there are eleventy-seven better ways a more savvy vendor can get ahold of me so fuck off (b2) you are a production company gearing up for a new show and want to get ahold of me via phone 'cuz it's much quicker. So the only reason for you to leave a voicemail is if you're about to contract with me for thousands of dollars of work. And if you're in a hurry you're going to email me anyway because the person who gave you my info gave you my vCard and you've got no less than five emails to hit me at. And even then, I'm hired by text about as often as I'm hired by voicemail. Well, that or you're my mother or my mother-in-law. Who leave "it's just me" voicemails because they're in their 70s. But shit. Even my father-in-law texts if he's got something important.
#justgenxthings But seriously 2(b1) is the usual case when working with my peers. Working with older clients requires almost always listening to a lengthy voicemail and having a 20 minute phone conversation at the next chance I have.Well, that or you're my mother or my mother-in-law. Who leave "it's just me" voicemails because they're in their 70s. But shit. Even my father-in-law texts if he's got something important.
Holy SHIT I hate voicemail. Senior year, I didn't delete my voicemail till the inbox was full. 50 messages. Guess what ALL fifty of those voicemails were? My mom, in the exact same tone, with the exact same message: "Call me back." Mom. MOM. I KNOW you want me to call you back. Inherently, by calling me, and me missing the call, and you BEING my MOTHER, I have to call you back. WHY DO YOU LEAVE THE MESSAGE. I tried telling her but she just...she still does it. This is hyperbolic annoyance, in case anyone is worried. Then everyone important just emails or texts me, so voicemail is pretty much unnecessary for me.
Once my mom called. I was away from my phone and didn't hear it ringing until too late. So I immediately called her back. She asked if I was screening my calls. I was like "Mom...I don't think you get cell phones...you always know who is calling...it shows..."
Somehow my voicemail has been broken for years. If you call me and I miss it, you aren't even given the option to leave a message. I lied and told my boss and mother that I've tried to fix it, but "Apple just blames AT&T, and AT&T blames Apple". Zero negative consequences so far. Love it.
Yea I just let it fill up. It gets the point accross. At first it was nerve-wracking but then, like drowning, I suddenly felt at peace.
Man I wish I could do this, my phone has a persistent voicemail notification that's impossible to dismiss. The only way to get rid of it is to not have new voicemails. I don't even listen to them anymore, I just call it up and hit 7 until it says I don't have any new ones.
I hate voice mail and haven't used it for years. And I'm Gen X. My voice mail is disabled. I'm very easy to find on the internet if you spend 10 seconds looking. If I miss a call, I'll look up the caller before I return the call. In Norway where I live, almost everyone's phone number is in the directory so it's really easy to find out where a call is coming from. If it's blocked, I won't call back - they'll call again if it's important. I also don't leave voice messages, figuring most folks think like me.
Not just millenials. I don't like them. I'll let them sit on my phone for hours, sometimes days. Most of the time, a text would be better. A hangup from a contact means: call me when you can. I actually removed my message from my voicemail, and only had to add it recently for a business call that I was expecting. The only time I answer an unknown call is when I am expecting a call from a non-contact.