Calendly Vs. Spontaneity - A remedy
The fine line between accessibility and boundaries.
One of my children has a health specialist with whom we work. Recently, I was on a call with this specialist, and he told me at the end of the call, “If anything comes up, the phone number on my website is my cell, just call me and I’ll be in touch within the day.”
I nearly toppled from my chair when he mentioned that. To provide some context, this individual is highly respected in his field, operates his own private practice, teaches at an Ivy League medical school, has a substantial body of work related to this practice, and his personal cell phone number is directly available on his website and just told me, “Call whenever.”
It has caused me to reflect on my access to people and how I have often erred in scheduling meetings with them on a future date (typically weeks away) using my Calendly. I decided in the last few weeks to switch it up a bit, and here are three ways I have done this:
I received an email at 6:30 a.m. regarding a client who has a job offer he is considering and asked me for advice. I dropped off my kid at school at 7:45 and called him in the parking lot. We spoke for about 15 minutes and prayed together.
I received an e-mail from a job seeker who wanted to retain me for a long-term coaching relationship, but it was clear he just needed some quick feedback. We scheduled a 30-minute Zoom meeting for the next day, where I developed a plan for him to move forward. The entire call lasted approximately 10 minutes.
I received a text from a client that he has been invited to apply for a promotion and asked me for advice. We scheduled a phone call for the following morning while I was commuting to an event.
This medical professional inspired me and his willingness to serve his patients and families with rapid responses - an anomaly in the medical world.
How can you apply rapid response time in your business?