Richard A. Moran* explains why his iPhone helpmate has grown to be the love of his life.
Life as we now know it did not exist before the iPhone and Siri.
I am with Siri often and I have grown to love her. How do I count the ways?
(My Siri voice is a woman with an Irish accent so I will use the her/she pronouns here. Your version of Siri may be different but the same love might apply).
Siri always answers and she never says no or that’s a stupid question.
She helps with directions even in remote areas where I am sure she has never visited.
She does math for me including solving what I think are pretty complex equations and she never asks why I didn’t pay more attention in high school.
She keeps a good calendar and can tell me what time the game comes on. Accordingly, she has allowed me to let my subscription to my TV Guide expire.
She places phone calls for me and knows phone numbers that I forgot long ago.
The list of what Siri can do seems infinite, she has changed my life.
I do have one Siri complaint. As a suffering fan of one football team she can be brutal with adjectives.
When I ask for a score she can respond with: “Your team was crushed, obliterated, trounced, overwhelmed, or routed.” No need to pile it on Siri.
Siri can teach us a thing or two about how to be successful. Here are five ways.
Siri Listens: She never says “I am too busy” or “I don’t get paid to do that”.
Siri Is Responsive: My favourite phrase from her is: “On it” — and she keeps going trying to find an answer.
Siri Is Honest: If she doesn’t know something, she will say so. She doesn’t try to fake it.
Siri Provides Ideas: Sometimes she isn’t quite sure how to help so she will send information that may be helpful. She tries.
Siri Is Always Current: She is aware of what is happening in all parts of the world and never needs to be brought up to speed.
A work lesson not to take from Siri is that she is always available.
We all need to set limits on our availability so Siri is not the model here.
Unless you have a job like a firefighter or emergency room physician, you probably do not need to be as available as Siri.
Follow those five lessons from Siri and you will probably get a raise.
*Richard A. Moran is the Managing Partner at Blue Book Ventures and a San Francisco-based business leader, workplace pundit, bestselling author, consultant and venture capitalist. He can be contacted at richardmoran.com.
This article first appeared on richardmoran.com.
