Just Touching Base
Today I caught up on other blogs I haven't read in a while. Once I'm done here, I may make a few phone calls, then I'll catch Law & Order. I realized today that I have to do better at keeping in touch... partly because of the below quote I came across. I read Raphael's note about Michael Richards, and it seemed to provoke some good comments. In a nutshell, my take is that there is no excuse, and an apology is an apology, but those words are from a man that thinks like that. I know he's sorry for saying it, but he should be sorry for thinking it.
Switching gears...
"As technology increases our ability to connect, we isolate ourselves into our own individualized ruin."
- sunchine
Wow. I read that entire paragraph and my mind raced. I had also realized that technology essentially shrinks the world. What once took months to travel around the world can be communicated instantly via e-mail, thus effectively allowing people to do more work in shorter time. Two decades ago, the amount of work completed in one day was significantly less than what is accomplished today because of our ability to move information quickly. Seems advantageous in the workplace, however TA touched on a very important point... what has this done to us socially?
I mentioned once before that we are the ones who were affected. A major change happened for this age group (I am 23). I have quite a few slightly older friends who can get by without the internet. For me however, it is a necessity. I feel cut off from the world without it. Sometimes I do purposely get away from it, but I know its still there and accessible. When there is a situation when I'm without it, I FEEL like I'm without it.
So the question then is... am I better or worse off? I can keep in touch with 10s of friends simultaneously with IM, and talk to all friends through blogging... but this kind of talking didn't exist before. Emotion can be conveyed and evoked in text, but hearing voices, intonations, and seeing expressions is a level of communication in itself.
Example - I've noticed with my younger siblings that the text used in text messaging and IM is out of control. I've made it a point to type as I would normally type (to an extent) when using both. I can only imagine that the prolonged practice of incorrect text language will translate into other more important things like speech and/or school papers. Are we doing the same with this form of communication? Using Facebook, IM, and ultimately staying connected through a textual world, keeps us isolated in the real one. Hence the reason why I enjoy the quote so much. Being "more" connected is an illusion.
My manager at work is copied on most e-mails. Every now and then he says "Lets stop the e-mail ping-pong... just pick up the phone." Very true. Often times, what would take 30 seconds to resolve on the phone will take 5 minutes or more to convey in text. On top of that, you can judge someone's response by either listening to tones, or looking at their expressions. At work, for these reasons, I try and make contact (phone or in-person) as much as possible. Why doesn't that translate to outside? I realize that I can go an entire day at work sending and answering e-mails, and I refuse to. Yet I come home and stare at a screen.
D from Cooper called me a few weeks back. He said, "I'm going through my phone book and touching base with everyone I haven't talked to in a while." That hit me. Not only was it a great idea, its something that never crossed my mind to do. My immediate inclination would be to see if someone is online. Maybe that's just me, but I think a lot of us are at that point by now. Anyway, I will be touching base with people (via phone) soon, and I will be trying to make it a habit. I challenge you to do the same. Find out what someone is up to. We've all heard the saying, "It's about who you know..." One of the things that bothers me most is only contacting people when I need something. Someone called me once, made some small talk, then asked me for a mutual friend's phone number. That's not cool, but its unfortunately understandable. So I think twice before I do that, and the solution is, stay in touch with everyone, and you won't be contacting them only when you need something.
It won't be easy, but it was a challenge. I'm starting tonight. Feel free to get at me first. You can see my phone number if you're my friend.
~JL
Switching gears...
"As technology increases our ability to connect, we isolate ourselves into our own individualized ruin."
- sunchine
Wow. I read that entire paragraph and my mind raced. I had also realized that technology essentially shrinks the world. What once took months to travel around the world can be communicated instantly via e-mail, thus effectively allowing people to do more work in shorter time. Two decades ago, the amount of work completed in one day was significantly less than what is accomplished today because of our ability to move information quickly. Seems advantageous in the workplace, however TA touched on a very important point... what has this done to us socially?
I mentioned once before that we are the ones who were affected. A major change happened for this age group (I am 23). I have quite a few slightly older friends who can get by without the internet. For me however, it is a necessity. I feel cut off from the world without it. Sometimes I do purposely get away from it, but I know its still there and accessible. When there is a situation when I'm without it, I FEEL like I'm without it.
So the question then is... am I better or worse off? I can keep in touch with 10s of friends simultaneously with IM, and talk to all friends through blogging... but this kind of talking didn't exist before. Emotion can be conveyed and evoked in text, but hearing voices, intonations, and seeing expressions is a level of communication in itself.
Example - I've noticed with my younger siblings that the text used in text messaging and IM is out of control. I've made it a point to type as I would normally type (to an extent) when using both. I can only imagine that the prolonged practice of incorrect text language will translate into other more important things like speech and/or school papers. Are we doing the same with this form of communication? Using Facebook, IM, and ultimately staying connected through a textual world, keeps us isolated in the real one. Hence the reason why I enjoy the quote so much. Being "more" connected is an illusion.
My manager at work is copied on most e-mails. Every now and then he says "Lets stop the e-mail ping-pong... just pick up the phone." Very true. Often times, what would take 30 seconds to resolve on the phone will take 5 minutes or more to convey in text. On top of that, you can judge someone's response by either listening to tones, or looking at their expressions. At work, for these reasons, I try and make contact (phone or in-person) as much as possible. Why doesn't that translate to outside? I realize that I can go an entire day at work sending and answering e-mails, and I refuse to. Yet I come home and stare at a screen.
D from Cooper called me a few weeks back. He said, "I'm going through my phone book and touching base with everyone I haven't talked to in a while." That hit me. Not only was it a great idea, its something that never crossed my mind to do. My immediate inclination would be to see if someone is online. Maybe that's just me, but I think a lot of us are at that point by now. Anyway, I will be touching base with people (via phone) soon, and I will be trying to make it a habit. I challenge you to do the same. Find out what someone is up to. We've all heard the saying, "It's about who you know..." One of the things that bothers me most is only contacting people when I need something. Someone called me once, made some small talk, then asked me for a mutual friend's phone number. That's not cool, but its unfortunately understandable. So I think twice before I do that, and the solution is, stay in touch with everyone, and you won't be contacting them only when you need something.
It won't be easy, but it was a challenge. I'm starting tonight. Feel free to get at me first. You can see my phone number if you're my friend.
~JL
posted by JC at 8:26 PM
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