For those of you who know me, you are probably aware of my distain for speaking on the phone. Why do I dislike phone calls so much? Well, usually they require me to stop what I’m doing and spend five minutes volleying small talk back and forth before the other party gets to the topic at hand. Then there’s the “oh yeah, I also wanted to discuss this and that.”
Then, when it’s all said and done, there’s the long goodbye dance that inevitably takes place. “I hope you have a good rest of the afternoon.” “You too, tell your grandma I said ‘hi.” “Oh, I will and don’t forget to drive safely.” “Thanks, and you be sure to do that thing I said you should do.” “Ok, bye, love you.” “Love you too…”
To quote the timeless truth of Kimberly “Sweet Brown” Wilkins, “ain’t nobody got time for that.”
But let’s say somebody called you and left a message that you really should follow up on. What are the chances that you’re going to even remember to call them back in a timely manner? Well, what if I told you that after 19 iterations of iOS, Apple has got your “back” with Call Back Reminders.
To set up a call back reminder, you first must have missed a call. I’m betting you’ve already completed step one.
In the Phone app, go to the “Recents” tab. You can either set the screen to view “All” or “Missed” calls by toggling the switch at the top of the screen. Alternatively, you can choose “Missed” calls from the blue filter button in the upper right corner.
When you find the call that you’d like a reminder for, gently swipe it from the right to the left. You’ll see a blue icon with a clock appear. Tap that icon to bring up the call back reminder menu.
There are three items to choose from:
– Remind me in 1 Hour
– Remind Me Tomorrow
– Remind Me Later…
If you choose that last one, you’ll be able to choose a specific date and time.
The reminders are added to the Reminders app where they’ll sit and wait until the specified time. You can also interact with those reminders just like any other reminder and make further adjustments as necessary.
So, the next time someone is calling you, just send it to voicemail and remind yourself to call them back when you have time. Or, just make everyone’s life easier and text them back.
This tip was featured on episode 515 of the Notnerd Show. Click HERE if you’d like to watch the clip.
