It's time to cut it out

Can you remember going to watch a movie with friends when you were young?

The time, planning and commitment from you and your friends was so vital to insuring everyone was there to see it.

Back 20 years ago you would need to:

●       Call everyone up to see who was keen

●       Check the newspaper for the movie showing times

●       Call everyone back to agree on what movie and what viewing time

●       Agree to meet at the food court next to the movie theatre under the clock at 4:00pm

●       Put the phone down and make sure you were at that clock at no later than 3:59pm because you knew that after you put that phone down there was no way for you to get in contact with you friends, and there was no way you were going to miss seeing Will Smith in Men in Black.

And you did. Without fail, you were there.

Before the long weekend, I decided to get a last minute haircut with my barber. Usually he is fully booked, but I thought I would try my luck at a walk in. As expected, he was booked, so I was asked to go on a wait list. If somebody cancelled, I would have 15 minutes to make it to the chair.

Fortunately for me, I got the call. I say fortunately because a haircut is one of the few pleasures I really look forward to each month. It gives me 30 minutes to escape life and work, and it’s a great opportunity to just chat about what’s going on and spend some time on myself.

As I go to sit in the chair, I say to Louis how lucky I am to have gotten a time before the long weekend. With a somewhat disappointing tone he tells me that, “it happens almost on a daily basis”.

Louis tells me this is the fourth time this particular client has cancelled without notice. No phone call. No response to a text message reminder sent out from the shop. Nothing.

Louis loses hundreds of dollars every week because people fail to show up. That chair sits empty, all because someone couldn’t send a text message or make a quick call.

And it got me thinking, with all this technology when has it ever been acceptable to have no regard for other people’s time?

This is one of the things that frustrates me most, not just at work, but in life. Technology in recent times has made it acceptable to be “running 5 minutes late” to every commitment. But not only that, it has made some of us so out of touch we fail to communicate at all.

It’s bullshit and it’s not good enough.

On average every week I set aside around 20, 30-minute time slots for interviews. Some weeks I have everyone turn up, and some weeks I would have 10 people not show up at all. That’s 5 hours of time that I have set aside for you, to help you with a resume, an interview, or even to give you advice on the current market.

And when I sit there waiting for you, 5 minutes after our agreed time, I always get that sinking feeling of disappointment; that feeling of being let down. You agreed that you wanted to catch up. You also agreed on the time. So why didn’t you follow through?

I get that life happens and more often than not there is a good reason for why you couldn’t make it. But there is no good reason for failing to let that person know why you can’t make it. Even if it’s a text 5 minutes before the meeting –– yes it’s still extremely frustrating, but it’s a lot better than not knowing at all.

The buck stops with you. Hold yourself accountable. And if you commit to something, follow through.

Also if you wonder how I look so fresh, visit Louis and the team at The Barberhood on Martin Place. Best barbers in Sydney, without a doubt.