I’ll admit it: I hate talking on the phone. I’m in my early 30s, so I certainly grew up with the phone as my primary means of communication as a child and through my teens, but my professional years have been spent relying on Google, email and social media for any communication I cannot conduct in person. I’m a huge proponent of getting out and meeting people in person, but I absolutely loathe having to talk on the phone.

When I was a practicing attorney, I liked doing things by email so there was always a record. However, when I became a journalist and started writing for Forbes and then ESPN, I had to get over my aversion to the phone in order to interview sources for my stories. Then I joined Reputation Ink, and I was encouraged to pick up the phone to follow up on pitches and get to know editors.