Yoo-hoo… is anybody listening?

As I sat in the back of a taxi rushing from one appointment to another this week, the taxi driver asked me: “And how’s your day going?” I stopped and chatted and found out what he thought of the troubles with the unions and Qantas.

The taxi driver lamented that most people are too busy on their mobile phones to chat any more. As I said goodbye and thanked the driver, I noted how great it was to have a chat and hear someone else’s point of view.

It made me wonder what else do I miss out on because I am often not “present” as I focus on what’s on my iPhone?

Most business people seem completely addicted to their phones. When a plane touches down, many simultaneous “ding dings” chime out, demanding the attention of their owners.

A friend of mine recently lamented that he had been unreachable because he was in an all-day meeting – and the response when he did come “back to the grid” was: “Is something wrong with your phone??” People seem to have high expectations that if they send a message the response will be instantaneous.

I was “off air” for two days this week – no email, phone, SMS or internet – and while I had quite a backlog of emails and messages on my return, I was highly efficient at getting back to people because I was completely focused on that task in that hour.

Is all this “immediate” communication really giving us the opportunity to do good work? How many emails or text messages are dashed off in haste only to be misunderstood or incomplete?

As the taxi went passed a bus stop I noticed that most of the people waiting were all inspecting their mobile phones – not even noticing the existence of the other human beings around them.

In all this urgency to connect, are we not “seeing” those around us? People who provide us services or who are part of our community.

Last week I was asked by one of the judges in the EY awards – how do you juggle all the different responsibilities that you have? My answer to this question (and it is question that I often get asked) is be truly “present”. Turn off your mobile phone and be with whoever you are with.

So should this same courtesy extend to those beyond business colleagues, family and friends?

Okay, I am taking a personal challenge for the next 21 days to not use a mobile device in the presence of others. And I wonder who I will get to meet and what conversations I will get to experience.

Let me slow things down – and not rush to everything, and I’m sure I will do better work as a result.

Naomi Simson is considered one of Australia’s ‘Best Bosses’. She is an employee engagement advocate and practices what she preaches in her own business. RedBalloon has been named as one of only six Hewitt Best Employers in Australia and New Zealand for 2009 and awarded an engagement scorecard of over 90% two years in a row – the average in Australian businesses is 55%. RedBalloon has also been nominated by BRW as being in the top 10 Best Places to Work in Australia behind the likes of Google. One of Australia’s outstanding female entrepreneurs, Naomi regularly entertains as a passionate speaker inspiring people on employer branding, engagement and reward and recognition. Naomi writes a blog and is a published author – and has received many accolades and awards for the business she founded – RedBalloon.com.au.