Present in the Moment

Earlier this week, I was in a meeting, telling them about our last blog about respect. A friend came in and complained that I was not answering my mobile phone; so, she tracked me down in the meeting! She was the second person that day who complained to me that I didn’t answer the phone when they called.

How did we get to the point that we expect people to stop whatever they are doing to take our call? That we believe that a phone call is more important than whatever we are doing at the moment?

In fairness to the person I am with or the task I have at hand, I want to be present in the moment. That means that I turn my phone off (or leave it in the car) and close my laptop so that I am not distracted by calls and email messages that are coming in. I try to listen carefully to what the person(s) I am with have to say and I try to give them what they need from me. When we are through, I check and return calls and messages.

And, if I absolutely must interrupt a conversation because I expect an important call or email (i.e., from a child or critical business associate), I let the person I am with know and apologize in advance. I am loathe to make the person I am with feel that anyone or anything is more important than they are at that moment. I want to show them respect.

Is this such a bad thing?

Question to ponder: What would happen if you let a few calls go into voicemail while you were with someone you cared about? Try it and see what happens to your level of peace and enjoyment in the moment!