I was cleaning the basement last weekend and moving file boxes around and a AT&T bill dropped on the floor. I picked it up and it was a bill from the 1980’s Funny enough the total for our local and long distance service was $74.65 a month. In the next box was my family’s 2014 mobile AT&T bill for $295.00 dollars a month. Have texts and emails revolutionized our lives and improved our effective communication or just made us reclusive and broke?
This past week at least 3-4 of my friends have been involved in technological warfare. In all instances someone was mad, blasted of some form of typed message that could have well been a grenade. One electronic word bomb lead to another word bomb and BAM it was Typed WORD WAR! This TEXT TRAP or EMAIL AMBUSH seemed to create situational conflicts for all those involved. Would you break up by sending a text message or email? How much of your social life do you conduct through text messages or email? Do you have conversations with text messages or email?
Text and email technology has changed how we related to one another. Has this form of artificial socialization impacted our ability to emotionally connect and communicate effectively?
It may be true that text or email technology has provided us the ability to connect anytime day or night no matter where we are. We are using this technology when we are traveling, while we are in a meeting, when we are with our friends and out to dinner with our family. It has provided us the ability to work 24 hours a day/7 days a week giving our employers access to us at anytime include tracking us through GPS. The technology has given an all around new meaning to the words multitasking.
So ok wait-a-minute, has all this technology robbed us of our ability to have a verbal conversation?
While texts and emails have given us a way to always be connected, how is it that people seem to be less connected than ever?
Mis-communication, poorly understood messages, impulsive or reactive responses have all seemed to effect our social relationships. People seem to feel more empowered to blast an email or text message communicating messages using words they would never say to on telephone and definitely not face-to-face.
Overall, texts and emails have revolutionized the way in which we stay connected with friends and family or be more accessible at work.
Have we become so weak that we don’t have the strength to pick up the hand set and make a phone call?
I have a challenge to my blog readers, the next time you reach to type an email or send a text, instead call the person on the phone and set up a date, “old school”.
TEMENOS CIRCLE 