You have a good conversation, promise to send something over, and mean to keep in touch. A few busy weeks later, the promise is still somewhere in your head.
Keith Ferrazzi and Tahl Raz's Never Eat Alone was one of the inspirations behind PersonalCRM. It gave us a reason to think more deliberately about the everyday work of maintaining relationships: remembering the conversation, making the introduction, and finding time to catch up again.
This is our way of putting that intention into practice. PersonalCRM is an independent product, with no affiliation with or endorsement by the authors.
What is Never Eat Alone about?
Never Eat Alone presents networking as an ongoing practice of helping people and maintaining relationships. It puts generosity at the center of building a network.
The publisher's overview highlights two particularly useful ideas: help without keeping a tally of favors, and stay in contact beyond the moments when you need something. The book was first published in 2005; the expanded edition, credited to both Ferrazzi and Raz, appeared in 2014.
For us, the practical question is what happens after you close the book. How do you make room for people in an ordinary week, when your inbox and calendar are already full?
Turn a good conversation into a next step
Here is a small routine you can use with PersonalCRM, a notebook, or a spreadsheet. The examples and steps below are our suggestions, rather than an official method from the book.
Start with a few people you want to see again
Choose five people: perhaps a former colleague, a friend who moved away, a mentor, and two people you recently met. Add their names and a line about how you know them.
You can import your address book later. Starting small makes it easier to learn whether this habit helps before spending an afternoon organizing hundreds of contacts.
In PersonalCRM, networks let you group people into circles such as university, work, or a running club. Use those groups when they help you find someone. You do not need a detailed classification system to send a message.
Write down the detail you want to remember
Imagine a conversation with a former colleague who is preparing to open a studio. A useful note might be:
Opening a studio in November. Looking for an accountant. I offered to ask Sam for a recommendation.
That is an invented example, but it shows the level of detail we mean. It gives your next conversation somewhere to start and preserves the promise you made. A full transcript would add work without necessarily helping.
Keep notes relevant and considerate. Write down what someone chose to share and what you need to follow through.
Give a promise its own reminder
“Send the accountant recommendation on Friday” is a specific task. “Keep in touch every few months” is a longer-term intention. Store them separately so one does not get lost inside the other.
In PersonalCRM, create a dated reminder for the recommendation. When you have sent it, mark the reminder complete. See how reminders and notifications work for delivery options.
The reminder does not make the introduction for you. It helps you remember to do it through your usual email or messaging app.
Choose a realistic contact frequency
A monthly catch-up might fit one relationship; a quarterly check-in might fit another. These are examples, not deadlines to impose on someone else. Choose a frequency that suits both of you and adjust it when circumstances change.
PersonalCRM uses the last recorded contact and your chosen frequency to show who is due for a catch-up. After an actual conversation, save a note with a type such as Call or Coffee to update that history. A plain Note preserves context without pretending you spoke. Our guide to staying in touch explains the distinction.
A weekly review you can finish
Set aside a few minutes at a time you can usually keep. Open your reminders and look at the people you have not spoken to recently.
- Keep a promise. Send the resource or make the introduction you offered.
- Choose someone to contact. Read your last note and write a message that relates to them.
- Record what happened. Save any useful context after the conversation.
- Adjust an unrealistic reminder. If you repeatedly put it off, change the frequency or decide whether it still belongs on your list.
You do not have to clear every reminder in one sitting. The useful outcome is a conversation or a kept promise, not an empty dashboard.
Does a personal CRM make relationships transactional?
It depends on how you use it. A list of favors owed would serve a different purpose from a note that helps you remember a friend's new job.
We build PersonalCRM for the second situation. The app can hold the context and remind you to reach out. You still decide whether to call, what to say, and when someone needs space. No contact count or reminder streak can tell you how good a relationship is.
If you want to try this routine, use PersonalCRM for free. The web Free plan includes up to 100 contacts, notes, reminders, and networks, with no time limit or credit card required. Add a few people, save one detail, and follow up on something you already meant to do.