Gina – I am glad you agree…It’s nice to be able to share a career lesson from a real-life event! I appreciate you stopping by!

Jacqui – How funny that you have a similar story. I will say my Google phone makes waiting much easier, but I like to try to remind myself that I don’t need to be productive every second! Thanks for your note!

Thanks for your comment, Julie! I couldn’t agree more!

Kirk – I couldn’t agree more! I love being able to be in touch, but sometimes, it is time to look around! Thanks for your comment!

Great post. It’s funny how our “productivity” can sometimes keep us from being just that – productive. In the job search, people search high and low for advice as they look for employment, but can forget to open up their eyes and look right in front of them. The perfect opportunity could be right there!

I’m guilty of being buried in my email, social media, and text messages and have found myself missing out on the little things in life that really matter. Word of advice (and I need to take my own, here): Put. The. Phone. Down. Learn how to compartmentalize work and your home life. As hard as it sounds, you’ll be surprised how easy it is to do (and how happy you’ll be).

Keep up the great work. I enjoy your posts and will certainly pay it forward, sharing with others!

Kirk Baumann

Your story reminded me of a different but somewhat related one of my own. Unlike you and Jacqui, I met a client for lunch and a different scenario developed. We had talked back and forth on Facebook but I didn’t have a Smartphone then and I never wrote down her number. I ended up being more than a 1/2 hour early and sitting in my booth, wondering where she was. I alerted the staff, gave them my business card in case someone asked for Julie…

When she finally came, I asked what held her up. She said nothing held her up, she was right on time… I had gotten the time confused. Now if I had my current smartphone I could have sent her an FB message to check on her… Instead it was my own mistake and I was the one who wasn’t connected.

I laughed aloud when reading your post because I experienced the exact scenario recently this summer when meeting ‘in real life’ (for the first time) a client of mine at the lobby of a local hotel. She was in town for a conference and invited me to lunch.

Though she suggested we meet in the main lobby, we both ended up in our own individual vortexes literally yards from one another: she, standing, chatting with a friend near the lobby front doors and me, intermittently reviewing my Droid screen and glancing about me, while I sat in a cushy lobby chair.

I had actually prided myself in arriving early, but it was 5 minutes or so past our meeting time when we actually connected!

Thanks for the insightful article and great analogy. Perfectly put for job seekers. While maximizing technology is a good thing, pulling one’s attention from the smart phone from time to time may help them discover those opportunities awaiting them, just around the corner, or in the same lobby! 😉

Thanks!
Jacqui