Friday, February 1, 2019
What is the deal with email? I think even before texting became the way of communicating, email slowly became the number one enemy of communication skills and laid the ground work for hiding behind a screen. If you are like me, you probably receive 20-40 emails per day. The irony of it is, most of the people you are communicating with are in the same building. I know you will probably have the argument that it keeps you organized and you can go back and find a document or a time for a meeting. But when someone says, I'll email you, when you could discuss it right then, it truly is taking away expressions, attitudes, demeanor, and personality. So my generation started with email, while today's generation uses text and social media. What's next? Virtual secretaries? Are the new ways of communicating taking away from people skills? I see it everyday teaching. We are having to teach people skills and work ethics skills to students because they don't typically communicate this way anymore. It is easier to say it behind a screen than talk to someone face to face. Just some thoughts for today. As always, please feel free to respond or comment. Opinions are always welcome.
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you know how much I love email :-)
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Matt about email and texts taking away expressions, tone, attitudes, etc. For example, my daughter and her friend took my vehicle to Madisonville Sunday afternoon. I told them not to stay too long because I needed a ride to church later. So here's the text "conversation". 3:49 - (Me) I'm gonna need a ride to church at 4:25. 3:50 - (D) We're about to leave. 4:26 - (Me, after looking outside and seeing my car home) Thanks for being on time but Nancy and I decided 4:45 will be early enough. 4:27 (D) Wym (what you mean) we're in the drive way. 4:27 (Me) I know :) I said thank you :) 4:27 (D) Oh okay, thought it was sarcasm. 4:28 (Me) Nope
ReplyDeleteThat was a perfect example of how email and text messages can be misinterpreted. I was offering a complimentary thank you and my daughter and her friend perceived it as being snarky! Don't get me wrong, email is great and I love to text short messages, but they sure aren't helping with communication skills, not to mention, spelling! If I really want to say something important to someone, it's going to be in person or by phone so he will know exactly what I am voicing and my demeanor when the words are coming out of my mouth!
As a Business professional and teacher, I completely agree with your frustration of teaching students how to have a personal conversation. However, I do see the advantages from a business standpoint such as speed, resources, efficiency, documentation, etc. My personal preference: depends on the situation. I like the documentation if it is something I may need at a later date and I much prefer email to the old memo format; however, if it is a conversation that needs discussion, I'd much rather talk face-to-face than send a bazillion emails back and forth.
ReplyDeleteEmail is a sign of the times. It has revolutionized the way we communicate with each other for many years now, good or bad. It can be impersonal, but its a great way to collaborate, train, and keep important info. Society does seem to rely on it heavily. It does add to my personal stress level sometimes though because I feel that email forces me to multi task constantly. Unfortunately, It has impacted interpersonal skills, without a doubt. I don't see an end in sight :/
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