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Woman charges $480 an hour to help Gen Z and millennial workers overcome their fear of talking on the phone

Feb 9, 2013
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This is just crazy!

Smartphones can do lots of things – but plenty of users make very few actual phone calls on them, if any at all.

That's left many younger workers lacking the confidence to speak effectively on the phone at work.

Mary Jane Copps spotted the rise of "phone phobia" 16 years ago and set up a consultancy called The Phone Lady to help companies improve the telephone skills of their staff.

"Gen Z have never had the skills given to them," she told Insider. "In my generation, the phone was on the wall in everyone's house and we were taught to answer it and make calls at a young age.

"Now we have several generations that were never taught anything about talking on the phone and people have removed phones from their homes."

Alison Papadakis, director of clinical psychological studies at Johns Hopkins University, told Insider that phone phobia was more common in younger generations.

She said: "Gen Z and millennials have a lot less experience talking on the phone because texting and instant messaging have been the primary communication mode for their generation. Since they have a lot less experience talking on the phone, they have less comfort with it. That sets up people who are vulnerable to social anxiety to have anxiety in that situation."

Copps charges $480 an hour for one-on-one coaching and $365 for 30-minute webinars as part of a seven-part program. For corporate workshops, the daily rate is $3,500. Insider has verified these figures using redacted invoices supplied by Copps.

Many of Copps' clients are in the financial sector or start-ups. Her first step is working out why an individual is anxious about phone calls.

"A common fear is 'what if someone asks me a question and I don't know the answer'," she said. "I often say 'for the next three days, I don't want you to text anyone', and tell them to call their friends and family.

"If they're not even used to talking on the phone to their mother then the process is so scary. So I can't say I'm going to make them call prospective clients as they would just fall apart — we start with their family or someone they know."

Improvising on a call can be scary, so her approach involves using role play. "If people aren't ready to answer the phone, I set up a time where I randomly call them throughout the day and have practice conversations," Copps said.


 
Weird... my wife is apprehensive about calling people she doesn't know such as when calling a business. She will do it of she needs to but she doesn't like it.

I have never heard of someone who's afraid to call their own mother.
 
They must be getting to the tail end of millennials for this. I am right in the middle of that age range and I have called collect from a payphone as a child not because I had to but because 30% of commercials in the late 90s were for collect calling.
 
This is just crazy!

Smartphones can do lots of things – but plenty of users make very few actual phone calls on them, if any at all.

That's left many younger workers lacking the confidence to speak effectively on the phone at work.

Mary Jane Copps spotted the rise of "phone phobia" 16 years ago and set up a consultancy called The Phone Lady to help companies improve the telephone skills of their staff.

"Gen Z have never had the skills given to them," she told Insider. "In my generation, the phone was on the wall in everyone's house and we were taught to answer it and make calls at a young age.

"Now we have several generations that were never taught anything about talking on the phone and people have removed phones from their homes."

Alison Papadakis, director of clinical psychological studies at Johns Hopkins University, told Insider that phone phobia was more common in younger generations.

She said: "Gen Z and millennials have a lot less experience talking on the phone because texting and instant messaging have been the primary communication mode for their generation. Since they have a lot less experience talking on the phone, they have less comfort with it. That sets up people who are vulnerable to social anxiety to have anxiety in that situation."

Copps charges $480 an hour for one-on-one coaching and $365 for 30-minute webinars as part of a seven-part program. For corporate workshops, the daily rate is $3,500. Insider has verified these figures using redacted invoices supplied by Copps.

Many of Copps' clients are in the financial sector or start-ups. Her first step is working out why an individual is anxious about phone calls.

"A common fear is 'what if someone asks me a question and I don't know the answer'," she said. "I often say 'for the next three days, I don't want you to text anyone', and tell them to call their friends and family.

"If they're not even used to talking on the phone to their mother then the process is so scary. So I can't say I'm going to make them call prospective clients as they would just fall apart — we start with their family or someone they know."

Improvising on a call can be scary, so her approach involves using role play. "If people aren't ready to answer the phone, I set up a time where I randomly call them throughout the day and have practice conversations," Copps said.


Good for her, strike while the iron is hot.
 
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I guess I have the reverse phobia. I get anxious about the phone because often times the person on the other end does not know the answer to my question. Then I have to play nice while I do their job for them and talk them through how they are going to take action and solve the problem they caused and I am calling about.

Calling 1-900 #’s definitely is much easier. I ask them what color shoes they have on and ask them to stroke their toasters and tell me how hot it is. I ejaculate and thank them kindly for their time. Bill comes later, easy peasy!
 
They must be getting to the tail end of millennials for this. I am right in the middle of that age range and I have called collect from a payphone as a child not because I had to but because 30% of commercials in the late 90s were for collect calling.

10-10-321 and 10-10-220!

Can't believe this was only 20 years ago! Seems like a lifetime. Kind of like when we cared about on-peak vs off-peak cell phone hours 😂

 
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I'm in the Xennial micro generation and I've always hated talking on the phone. I thought it was just a me problem. Probably is.
 
They have jumped it yes, we can debate the timeframe later,
it was more about the boobs comment.
Well, yeah.

But I'm betting Millenials don't actually hate boobs. They probably hate phony corporate titty-themed restaurants that are a pretty pathetic PG-13 level soft porn substitute for lonely dorks.

Pretty sure SouthPark devoted an entire story arc to that issue quite a few years ago.

 
Well, yeah.

But I'm betting Millenials don't actually hate boobs. They probably hate phony corporate titty-themed restaurants that are a pretty pathetic PG-13 level soft porn substitute for lonely dorks.

Pretty sure SouthPark devoted an entire story arc to that issue quite a few years ago.


This person followed me when I responded to the Hooters post

 
  • Haha
Reactions: torbee
Well, yeah.

But I'm betting Millenials don't actually hate boobs. They probably hate phony corporate titty-themed restaurants that are a pretty pathetic PG-13 level soft porn substitute for lonely dorks.

Pretty sure SouthPark devoted an entire story arc to that issue quite a few years ago.

or it's a scarcity issue. You're getting tits ass or anything you want online. I think I clicked on one ass video on instagram and now that's all I get.
 
You know what kids today need coaching on? How to hold a pen. My oldest holds a pen like he's recreating the shower scene from psycho. All stabby looking in his hand. I went to the bank today and the young gal who helped me had the pen in between thumb and index finger, and the rest of it kind of tucked at the end of her index and middle fingers. She was just scraping at the paper trying to make numbers.
 
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