Anxiety over work phone calls

sashafierce

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CorkFenian

Preparation is key here, have all the homework and prep work done prior to taking\making the phone call

It sounds obvious, but this breeds confidence

Unless you have a very understanding and empathetic boss I wouldn't mention it to much, as they may use it against you (I have seen it happen)

Confidence is gained by knowing something and knowing it well, you will be surprised that most of the people using acroynms don't understand them on a deep level, this is because they may not need to , I wouldn't worry too much about that aspect of it, if possible watch the others (if there are colleagues also doing it) create your own script that is comfortable for you and prepare it at home for a few evenings, there is no way around it, unless you wish to change roles. It sounds like an interesting role and will stand to you in the future. Best of luck It won't be easy I have a similar experience PM if suits

stop animal cruelty

I use to work in an office having to answer calls in front of people and the boss, oh god I hated it BUT few tips I can give u....

Always always have a pen and paper next to u, u can scribble down some key words or what ever, I found by doing this it provided like a back up for me.

Listen to the person on the other line. Not the person beside or behind u. Listen. Give ur and focus and attention to each call, I know its hard, it takes a while to get the hang of, but after a while u will naturally begin the become less conscious.

Go easy on yourself. You're trying your best. Not everyone is confident on the phone remember. It did take me time to overcome my fear, but trust me it does get easier. Work on it and it will become a Skill.

sashafierce

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amtc

In my first job my boss told me to stand up making a call. Worked!

neonsofa

amtc wrote: »

In my first job my boss told me to stand up making a call. Worked!

Can you elaborate on this? I'm intrigued!

Op I used to have anxiety and every morning I would dread making phone calls that day. After a few months of just biting the bullet I stopped caring. Not very helpful but there you go! Best of luck

heldel00

Speak slowly or slower than your usual rate at least. If you speak quickly, you'll ramble and trip over your words.
If you find that your voice is shaking because of nerves then empty your lungs (ie: exhale until you have no air left) and then slowly inhale. It should help to get rid of the voice tremor anyway.

Ionised

amtc wrote:

In my first job my boss told me to stand up making a call. Worked!

It sure does work. It's an old 'trick' that tends to increase confidence. Smiling also helps I find. The other party will 'hear' the smile. Sounds a bit mad but it works.

FanadMan

I used to work in a call centre and hated it. Well, hated the calls the most. I would get nervous and stutter and get confused. Was told to stand when getting awkward calls and it helped. But best tip was to smile when talking - it seems to transfer through your voice and make you sound happier and more confident. Over a while the smiling tip worked wonders.

You will definitely get used to it. I had the same problem six months ago. Now I coulnd't give a sh!t In a good way

Diziet

Practice, practice, practice. Role play, create some scripts and say them out loud (in private). Practicing aloud makes a huge difference.

Put some time into preparing for calls - plan exactly what you are going to say and practice beforehand. It takes a lot of effort to prepare like this, but it does pay dividents.

Victor

stop animal cruelty wrote: »

Listen to the person on the other line. Not the person beside or behind u. Listen. Give ur and focus and attention to each call, I know its hard, it takes a while to get the hang of, but after a while u will naturally begin the become less conscious.

All well and good until you have a 'donkey' in the office.

Senna

I don't know the nature of your calls, but if you can start the call with a couple of confident and relaxed statements, it sets the tone for the whole call.
I have to call people a lot higher up the food chain regularly, usually Americans, I might start off with "good to speak to you again", "good afternoon, sorry of course it's morning with you.... ", "how things in the world of xxxxx(their department)".

tacofries

Try joining Toastmasters,. Meant to be very very good!

killanena

All good tips here. I know this job is on the extreme side of this but any new job will take time to settle into and have confidence in. 6 months down the line you will not feel this way.

Talking over the phone to a stranger or someone you havent met in person is an Anxiety trigger for most people as you can't read their body language or facial expressions which is a big part of how us humans communicate.

I don't have a job as stressful as yours, but I do suffer Anxiety and I've always been terrible at any new job Ive started, but once I start to get into the flow of things I have been told that Im a valuable asset and teamplayer.

I hope you start to get the hang of things and enjoy your new job. Your well capable if you were chosen for the position. Keep telling yourself that

witchgirl26

OP I feel for you. In my old job I had to question people in interview style over the phone with my boss also on the phone and would freak me out completely at times. Best advice I got was to prepare a little script for yourself with a few standard opening lines and practice this before the call (so that when it comes to the call you have that down confidently). Also ensure that you have all your key points for the call written down in front of you and tick them when you pass them - this will stop any repetition and keep you focused.

If you're calling those in other countries where language/accent may cause a bit of a difficulty, just be prepared for them to maybe ask you to repeat yourself. It doesn't mean anything bad but it can take a minute for them to understand.

As someone else said, don't race through to get the call finished as soon as possible as that can stress you more. Take your time. And it sounds easy but don't overthink it too much.

ads20101

Ionised wrote: »

It sure does work. It's an old 'trick' that tends to increase confidence. Smiling also helps I find. The other party will 'hear' the smile. Sounds a bit mad but it works.

Ditto

If I have to make an important call, or partake in a high level conference call, I'll stick an earpeace in and walk and talk.

Not everyone's cup of tea, but it works for me.

bobbysands81

Some folk on this thread might find this leaflet on Responding to Difficult Phonecalls useful:

http://www.cseas.per.gov.ie/wp-content/uploads/Responding-to-Difficult-Phone-Calls-SelfCare-RPC005162_EN_WB_L_1.pdf