DON'T SACRIFICE HUMAN TOUCH & COMMUNICATING!

This is a plea to my young Twitter and Linkedin followers: “Never slack off on communicating” but more importantly, don’t ever discount how much the “Human Touch” effect can have on your business (and personal) relationships

I’m not faulting the younger generation. There are so many Social Media options made available to them today. The line of communications for today’s youths, teens and college students nowadays is done mostly through Text, Facebook and My Space. Just the other day, for example, I was standing in a convenience store line waiting at the checkout counter. A Mom was ahead of me with her two young children trying to wrap up her purchases. Her young boy, I’m guessing age seven or so, was texting off of his cell phone. The sister, maybe five at best, had a headset on, listening to her IPOD music and being totally oblivious to Mom.

This piece is a reminder to not become that convenience store moment in your life and shut out your family, your friends and your business clients. To succeed in life. To feel wanted. To feel good about one’s self, it starts and ends with a little bit of “Human Touch” as the Boss (Bruce Springsteen) once sang! I said this once before in a previous Blog of mine in that my first big league boss years ago always knew how to fill my gas tank everyday at the office. He just had to say “JIMMY BOY” but it was also a certain way that he said those words. It was the look I got when he entered the office each day. If we had computers and e-mail back then in 1980, I’d hate to see how our relationship would have evolved without those special moments of what I call “Human Touch?” Would I even be the person I am today without it?

That small bit of “Human Touch” was a key part in my drive to succeed. It’s what got me pumped everyday even though I was working in the “Big Leagues” and that accomplishment alone should have been the motivating factor. Trust me, it was my boss reaching out to me. That little way he addressed my name. That look he gave me. That’s what fueled my engine!

So please don’t hide behind your computers or cell phones. Reach out to your business customers. Demand of yourself to get face time! It’s okay to follow up periodically with a client through those modern electronic devices but it’s the human element involved in relationship building that will always forward the process! Similar to the world of a politician, there’s a reason why they must always get out each year and campaign for votes and shake hands with their constituents! Do you feel comfortable voting for someone that you’ve never met or heard speak?

Jim Loria
E-Mail: loria@sfstampede.com