There are those people whose life is an open book–they are eager and willing to talk over all the details with anyone and everyone who will listen. Some of us home business owners may be those sorts of open, social people and we certainly have some colleagues, customers, or clients who always have all sorts of personal life and family information to share. It can be tough to stick to business topics or even get a little bit of business accomplished during these animated conversations. So, how can we balance the personal chat, with the business communications?
For many of us, our social lives overlap and intersect with our personal ones. I have definitely had those coworkers, colleagues and clients whose conversation topics went beyond the weather and “the family is fine.” There are those who insist upon telling me every development in their lives and I could tell you how much their house sold for, the name of their grown child’s dog, and probably know their entire medical chart. Needless to say, it can be extremely challenge to get these people to stick to business. While I appreciate a little small talk, I am not really someone who shares intimate details of my life with clients and colleagues so I generally play the “keeping things on task” role. I can’t even imagine how work gets done between two very social communicators!
My only advice is to allow for some personal conversation, but be sure to keep track of what needs to happen. You might try to accomplish the business first: “Let’s settle this deal and get business out of the way so we can chat” or allow for plenty of personal conversation before getting down to business. I find the former works better for my peace of mind as then I can be present and open for the personal part of the conversation. Another idea is to try to accomplish business in other ways–via e-mail or fax–sometimes, people who like to chat in person can be more efficient and business-like with non-human communication.
Also: Simplifying Business Communication
Figuring Out the Right Questions to Ask