Contacting me

Every person is unique. Thus, we have different expectations from the person in order to reach the Pareto optimal of communication. To avoid any undesirable conflicts or negative thoughts, I wanted to make it clear how I communicate:

General communication style

  • I prefer straightforward communication instead of showing fake politeness.
  • A late reply from my side doesn’t mean that your message was not important. I prefer to have high focus and most days are fully scheduled between work and play. Hence, put more emphasis on the quality of my reply.
  • I wouldn’t say I like small talk. If I ask the usual “how are you?”, I am really interested in how you are feeling, and if all is really good in your life.
  • If I don’t reply even after a few days, most likely, I have missed your message. Feel free to inundate me with a reminder in that case, and expect an apology from me for missing your message.
  • By scheduling, I respect emphasizing a proper plan rather than an abstract idea: Let’s hang out sometime (an idea) vs. let’s hang out this Friday evening after training (plan)

Communication preferences

Email: If we have never met before, the best way to reach me is through email. I check my inbox regularly, and try to respond to all emails requiring a reply. However, time is finite and valuable. Hence, please try to keep your first email short (20-300 words), and convey the expectations clearly regarding what and/or why I can contribute to something.

Social media: I am active on the following platforms.

  1. LinkedIn: I usually depend on LinkedIn app notifications to reply to direct messages and connection requests. However, don’t send me a connection request without any common node. I still prefer an email instead of a message if you are reaching out to me without being connected on Linkedin.
  2. Instagram (@i.am.akshitgupta): I usually check Instagram once a day. However, if I don’t follow you, your message goes to a “requests” folder that I usually don’t check.
  3. Facebook: I check facebook once per week mostly for event notifications/invitations. Hence, please don’t message me via facebook messenger.

 

Texting and Calls: I consider WhatsApp and Telegram as my main texting channels. I use texting mainly to stay in touch with people who are already close to me. However, don’t send me “hey”, “hello ^V^” kind of texts which have no meaning and will usually be left unattended. My phone is almost always on silent. So, I will miss unscheduled calls, especially on those evenings when I have a sports training. If there is something that cannot be communicated via texting, then I prefer 1. scheduling an in-person meeting over a short coffee 2. scheduling a time for video/audio call

Conclusion

The above words are only written to provide a rough idea of my communication habits and to avoid any over/under-expectations. In terms of communication, I am not inflexible. In fact, my closest friends and people who I respect the most are those who abide by their words, are not afraid to express their criticism/praise for me, and naturally, they are rule-breakers.