This is an I-Heart podcast.

Good morning.

This is Laura.

Welcome to the new corner office, the podcast where we share strategies for thriving in the new world of work, where location and hours are more flexible

than in the past.

Today's tip is to find ways to put yourself at ease about picking up the phone.

Email can be easy to misinterpret, and work often goes better when we engage in real-time

conversation.

But a lot of people feel anxious about calling people.

I want to help you get over that.

There are a lot of things you can do to get more comfortable with dialing.

For starters, if you feel shy about calling someone without a scheduled appointment, try sending

an email an hour or so before saying that you'll be calling and identifying the reason.

That way, you know, they probably won't be surprised when they pick up the phone.

So you'll feel less awkward.

Hi, Sally, you might write.

Thanks for sending these documents. I have a couple of

questions about the program participant section, so I'll give you a call this afternoon. Or, good morning,

Marcos. I'm preparing for the Williams pitch, and I'd love to get your feedback on an idea. I'll

give you a call later this morning. It's a lot less intimidating to call someone who is expecting you. And a bonus. If you have a

tendency to delay making calls that you're nervous about, by sending the email, you have made a

commitment. So you're less likely to put it off. Notice that in those examples of emails, you did not

...