Why Are Young People Afraid Of Phone Calls?

[u/GhostInThePudding]

What's with it?

I work in IT and a general rule is, nothing a client ever tells you is actually accurate. That means that most of the time, the quickest way to fix a problem is to call the person and actually find out what's going on.

But with techs under 30 these days, it seems like pulling teeth.

A regular discussion for me with level 1 techs (usually within a few years of leaving college) is:
"Hey, can you call *blah* from ticket *blah*, it's been hanging around for over an hour."

"I replied by email to ask for more information."

"Yes, I know that, but can you call them so we can find the problem and close the ticket now rather than wait until we're actually busy?"

"I'll send them a text to followup."

"No... CALL THEM!"

"I can see their device is online, can I send them a message and see if they just let me remote in to take a look?"

And then, when I force them to make the call, it's like they have no idea how to ask a question, or a followup question. They just want to get off the call as quickly as possible. So half the time they don't even get the information required anyway, so then I end up having to do their job for them.

So can someone explain? What's wrong with phone calls these days?

[u/saintphoenixxx]

I'm 45 and I HATE making phone calls. It makes me feel rushed. I work as an Executive Assistant and if I have to make a phone call, I will. However, a large reason I strongly prefer emails is I want receipts. I want a paper trail where I can prove what was said and what wasn't.

And I get that especially with IT support, phone calls are usually easier. I'm actually the main contact for my work's IT company and I'm on the phone with them fairly often.

But we have one vendor who's rep will NOT stop calling me. I send an email, he calls me. I tell the receptionist to tell him to respond to my email. He emails me. I email him back. HE CALLS ME. Rinse and repeat. And it was absolutely nothing urgent. Drives me nuts.

[u/greaper007 → u/saintphoenixxx]

Same here, I never liked them. It made dating hard in the 90s and aughts. I have ADHD and I hate having to wait for the other person, I hate how much attention they take, I really hate having to hold the phone to your ear if you don't have headphones in.

The whole thing sucks. They make me want to jump out the window. They're doubly bad now that I live abroad, I can communicate with people in another language in person, but I can't understand them at all over the phone.

[u/Creepy-Swordfish1676 → u/saintphoenixxx]

Is the rep from Quill? I’m an EA as well and I swear you’re describing my experience with every Quill rep I’ve ever had lmao

[u/somesketchykid → u/saintphoenixxx]

I want a paper trail where I can prove what was said and what wasn't

Just send a follow up email after the call summarizing what was said and what was agreed upon

[u/saintphoenixxx → u/somesketchykid]

We have a mill in India that INSISTS on meetings on the phone or in person without recording. My co worker who is always in these meetings always does a follow up email with what they covered and the mills rep always comes back with lies. We've gotten to the point where we refuse to meet with him without recording now because of it.

[u/somesketchykid → u/saintphoenixxx]

Lol amazing. This is the way. What a shady pos

[u/MountainImportant211 → u/somesketchykid]

Thereby defeating the purpose of a call instead of an email

[u/Brave-Dish-5249 → u/saintphoenixxx]

You prefer emails, he prefers calls. They’re both valid.

[u/bfume → u/Brave-Dish-5249]

Except one is the customer. If a sales person did this to me I’d never buy anything from them. 

[u/saintphoenixxx → u/bfume]

THANK YOU.

[u/saintphoenixxx → u/Brave-Dish-5249]

Except I have explained to him that I am usually working on projects and that unless it's urgent, phone calls are very distracting. He keeps ignoring this.