Written by Kimi Hirotsu Ziemski of Energizing Enterprises
In this age of electronics and connectivity to all it is still possible to miss something essential in effective communications, and, by extension, relationship management.
The human touch.
Young or old, there is an essential value in the impact of connecting to each other at the simple level of human to human. It is the lack of that connection that can lead to misunderstandings at the lowest level of negative impact, and ruptured relationships at highest level of negative impact.
Tools can be valuable - for most of us the phone book of the past has been replaced by 'Contacts' or 'Address Book' and these are valuable tools. Ask anyone who has lost a phone number or business card.
It's knowing which tools are useful and which circumstances make them useful that is what is really valuable.
Because ultimately - at the heart of any effective communication - human to human connection is the elegant and yet not easy stuff of really meaningful relationships. It is the single most effective component of communications that is the basis of relationships that work.
So this week, or this day, decide who you will reach out to at a more human to human level. Have you always communicated by email? Call this time. Voice mails work just fine up to now? Have a conversation. As possible, have coffee or tea together. Skype a video call rather than just a voice call. Do a 'Facetime' coffee meeting.
Connect with the people who are part of your environment to make them more a part of your world.