In sales, it’s common practice to make sure you don’t get off the phone with someone who you’re trying to close without getting another time on the calendar for you to reconnect. If you get off that phone without a specific time when you will talk again, you will likely end up chasing that prospect for more time than you’d like, and making both of your lives more difficult.
If you apply a little bit of this strategy to everyday life, you start to make your life that much easier too. How many time do you talk to someone and say “we should get together sometime”?
Most people do this on the regular, but do you actually mean it? Do you want to get together with them. Our culture has it in our minds that we’re too busy to meet with other people, so we put it off for our future selves to have to worry about. But I’ve found that if you take initiative, you can really start to get to know people that you come to appreciate.
The next time before you tell someone “let’s hang out sometime!” Ask them if they have their schedule on them and plan the time right there and then.
For one of my friends who lives in NJ, we have a monthly call that we keep on the calendar. Less as a set in stone time when we catch up, but more as a reminder to get in touch with the other person and catch up. Having these things on the calendar are some of the best ways to keep in touch. If you actually care, you’ll probably do it.