[SSG nudge Leadership] Listening After Breakup: "That Point Today Stuck in My Memory"

The rapid advancement of IT devices such as smartphones and the emergence of social networking services (SNS) have dramatically increased the number of people with whom we form relationships. Considering the so-called "Girard's Law" by Joe Girard, the American car sales legend, which states that the optimal number of human relationships one person can maintain is 250, this is truly a remarkable change.

However, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues this year, with social distancing and mask-wearing becoming routine, many awkward situations arise during in-person meetings. It is less of an issue with people I already know, but I find it difficult to remember those I meet for the first time while wearing masks. This is despite having a strong memory for people, thanks to a lifetime of working with them.

For the past 10 years, I have been running the Global Young Business Manager (GYBM) training program, selecting about 150 recent university graduates annually and giving lectures, so I have usually been able to remember names and faces. This year, the 100 or so selected trainees were required to wear masks at all times during daily life and lectures, including during the selection interviews. After four months and several lectures where I called out their names and met them face-to-face, I was startled to find their faces unfamiliar when they lowered their masks while eating in the cafeteria.

Remembering people and being remembered has become more difficult. The uncertain situation with no end in sight continues. However, it remains an unchanging fact that in business activities, making others remember you amid many relationships is vital. To that end, I have strengthened a method I have been using for several years.

It involves leaving traces of attentive listening during meetings. After parting, I send a quick text message summarizing the conversation. Here is an example of a KakaoTalk message I sent to someone I met for the first time last week: "Sir! Sorry for texting you late. I gained great insights from our meeting last Friday. As I mentioned, I hope this will be a good opportunity for your new business direction. Please travel safely on the scheduled date, and I wish you all the best."

Here is an SMS message I sent to a university alumnus senior a month after our meeting. Although we knew each other indirectly, it was our first direct meeting. After hearing about the business he was promoting, I gave feedback two days later: "Senior! Sorry for the late greeting after our meeting the day before yesterday. First, I salute your passion. Although this is an issue completely sidelined in Korean society, I believe someone must take it on. If you allow me, I will also lend my support. The work I am doing is not easy either, but I will do my best. Sincerely, Park Chang-wook." Thanks to this, we met once more after the first meeting, and the project has progressed significantly.

Let me add one more way to win someone's heart: sending a gifticon online. I admired the exceptional performance of a young female head of department at a partner company I had met two or three times, so I always complimented her when we met. When I received a text asking about her well-being during Chuseok, I sent two cups of coffee?'Aa (Iced Americano)' from a well-known brand?via an online gift certificate, saying, "Rest well during Chuseok and enjoy it with someone." She replied immediately: "Oh my, Director, I am touched. What should I do? Really touched. I've been very busy lately and both my body and mind were exhausted, but these two coffees have melted it all away!"

As an executive of a partner company, you can imagine the trust and pace of our relationship. This became an opportunity to have conversations that quickly bridged a 25-year age gap. There was an even greater side effect. After registering her phone number on my smartphone, her profile picture appeared?a photo without a mask. I also started uploading more proactive and brighter photos of myself.

Park Chang-wook, CEO of Korea Knowledge Leader Association (Secretary General of Daewoo World Management Research Association)

◆What is 'Nudge Leadership'?

- 'Nudge Leadership' is not about coercive or directive oppression but about leading organizational or personal change through small, gentle interventions or motivation. It also involves improving human relationships through small changes in oneself, transforming into a person others want to follow. Ultimately, it breathes creativity and passion into organizations or relationships, creating new value and happiness.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.