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Have you ever noticed in our world of tweets, emails, and texting (just to mention a few modes of communication used nowadays) that there are a lot of people chatting, but are they really being heard? Are we really listening to each other?
We receive Twitter messages in our email, but do we really have communication with the person who initiated the message? How many times do we just hit “delete” and move onto the next message in our inbox. The same thing applies to messages we receive from Facebook that someone either wants us to confirm their friendship or comment on one of our posts. Do we always respond?
Then there are actual email messages. First thing in the morning before scurrying to begin a busy day we sit down to check our inbox. We tend to scan messages we have received, maybe answer one or two of high importance and make a mental note to respond to those which remain. Before we know it the day has ended, we are ready to eat dinner and spend a relaxing evening with our family and then it is off to bed. The “respond to later” group grows daily. Often times they just get deleted once too much time has elapsed. Here we find a break in the chain of communication.
We are definitely living in an age of advanced communication technology. We have computers for our Tweets and Facebook posts, IPhones, BlackBerrys and plain cell phones. Can you remember when we did not have a cell phone?
With the use of blue tooth it took me a while not to respond to a person standing next to me in a store when the spoke. I now know that they are speaking with someone on their cell phone.
If you take your kids to the park to spend “quality” time with them and you get a call, or a text message how long is it before you forget why you are there? How long is it before your children just decide that they are not being heard? You are busy with a digital conversation. The face-to-face communication with your child has run amuck.
A cell phone is great when we need to take care of an emergency at work and put a solution into the works. However, how many times are you out to dinner with your spouse, or family and they are looking forward to your being part of the occasion, and you get that dreaded call demanding your full attention. Communication at your table comes to a standstill! They are talking, but you are not listening.
We are living in a culture that demands constant connectivity with no respect to what we are personally doing. You could be having dinner out, or at home, sleeping or in the shower and our hand held devices have no mercy. We snap to attention.
Whatever happened to our face-to-face communication? I have a very dear friend who made a very wise comment to me. He told me that he did not send emails, or read them. “Emails do not tell me how you are really feeling,” he said. How true is that? Granted we can express our thoughts in an email, and even put a certain tone in what we are saying, but where is the personal interaction we used to enjoy?
Another misuse of emails or texting, in my opinion, is when a person goes on a rant about something they are displeased with and without truly considering their words they put how they feel out there and do not really care about the person on the other end reading it. Unfortunately, as much as the world is a much smaller place and people are able to stay in contact more readily with digital capabilities, our personal consideration of others can get lost. Once those words are out there the damage is done, you cannot take them back.
Obviously, I am part of the digital world of communication. I appreciate your reading my article. I also personally realize, from the expression on a child’s face, or even on an adult’s face, the importance of being listened to and truly heard.
In closing, I am hoping that this might prompt some thoughts on sharing your voice, your true personal face-to-face communication and actually listening to a person to hear what they are trying to say. We need to step back and realize that conversation, as we once knew it, is on the decline. We also need to recognize how conversation is changing and try to keep somewhat a balance in our communication.
Happy Tweeting, Texting and Chit Chatting. Make sure that when all is said and done you have been truly listening and heard what has been said!
Judy Conway
Email: judyconwaymarketing@gmail.com
Skype ID: judy.conway
http://homebusinessinatlanta.com
http://fullservicemarketingtools.com
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