Even if I’m just trying to schedule an appointment with someone, or order a pizza, even if I stand to benefit somehow, there is this unbelievable psychic weight if I have to do it over the phone. It’s too realtime. I have to think too fast. I might screw it up in my haste. THE PRESSURE.

One commenter:

I think this will change greatly over time. The younger my correspondants are, the more they use asychronous communication when not nearby. And i think this is a good thing.

Another:

I’ve sent this link to my wife because we’re exactly the same way. We’ve also sunk so low as to order pizza online and sometimes bicker over whose turn it is to make a phone call. It’s pathetic, really, but we REALLY HATE talking on the phone.

And an attention whore demonstrating why people who insist on phone over email are so annoying:

I often prefer using the phone. It’s quicker, I speak to a real person, I don’t have to wonder when the message will be received, I can check in real time how much detail is required and give just the right amount without needing to waste my time typing up stuff that the recipient isn’t interested in.

If you’re unable to understand what the recipient needs to know while you’re typing an email — or, more to the point, you’re unable to devote the two seconds it takes to figure it out — then you’re just one of the billion assholes I don’t want to communicate with.

Unless you’re a client, in which case you’re still an asshole but… wait, no, I don’t want to work with you either. Bad experiences with those types.