How many emails have you received this week/day/minute? Since the dawn of email (which occurred at some point since the Bronze Age), our efficiency at work has supposedly increased. There are some contexts in which email is appropriate and more effective. But there are crucial, often-forgotten advantages of picking up the phone. If you would hate to pitch your startup by email, don’t do all your networking by it either!

For any startup, it is often during a meeting or phone call that an investor or contact agrees to help you by completing an action: for example send you a document or introduce you to a useful contact. But because of poor memory and fading enthusiasm, a great opportunity will often be lost - unless you employ two simple techniques: follow up and chase up.