One of the biggest mistakes for any follow-up email is not including a strong call-to-action. Leaving the email open-ended with phrases like “let me know what you think” or “keep in touch” aren’t a strong enough incentive for your client to respond. You’re more likely to get a response when you ask pointed questions like “What day and time works best for you next week to discuss this further?” or “Based on the deadline that you mentioned, you’ll need to start our service by the end of this month—do you have 30 minutes to sit down and chat later this week?”
- Stuart Leung, "No One Likes the 'Just Following Up' Email"
When you shift focus from one task to another, that transition is neither fast nor smooth. Instead, there is a lag time during which your brain must yank itself from the initial task and then glom onto the new task. This shift, though it feels instantaneous, takes time. In fact, up to 40 percent more time than single tasking - especially for complex tasks.
Sensory inputs (something “real”) lead the brain to new connections—but so do thoughts (something “unreal”)! Mentally practicing a task produces the same physical changes in the brain as physically practicing it.
We learned pretty fast that hugging a customer doesn’t always result in great customer satisfaction. It really comes down to aligning your service with the specific expectations and aspirations of the people you serve.
Many times during training and competition, an athlete will experience what I call "don't" thinking. In "don't" thinking, people tell themselves what not to do. For example, a hockey player with whom I work used to tell himself, "Don't screw this up, don't swing too hard, and don't hit the ice before the puck." This type of thinking is not helpful, because by directing the mind to what is not supposed to be done, it increases the likelihood that the athlete will feel stress and anxiety. This state, in turn, makes it harder to pay attention to the task at hand, and thus people are more prone to do exactly what they were hoping to prevent.