Hurry up and wait

I'm back at the ye olde grind today. Last Friday, my consulting coworker was texting me about a reply from the client to a report I sent at the end of the day on Thursday. The client was asking questions about the requirements, and she was asking my colleague for help since I would be out of the office until today. 

I tease my work colleague that he delivers "white-glove" service. It's a good thing, but it can lead to getting inquiries when I'm out of the office. I gave him a satisfactory answer, and then I delivered a revised report today. There was no response.

Several people I work with at this client operate in a hurry-up-and-wait mode. They request something that is seemingly high priority; we turn it around right away, and then we don't hear anything back for days, weeks, or even months. That doesn't mean we, as consultants, don't turn everything around right away, but I've learned the game. No sense breaking my back for something that can wait, especially for people who take their sweet time with my requests.

This phenomenon is not unique to my industry. I see the same pattern with potential customers and business partners I encounter.