In most of the time that we are awake, we are communicating with people, be it one-to-one or to a group. In every situation, everyone responds differently to the same message that is put across to them. Furthermore, in this technological age, where everyone uses short message services and live chat messaging services to communicate with one another, cutting a long sentence short by using internet lingo are used ubiquitously and unconsciously. This could hamper our regular communications where much confusions take place. For example, insignificant gestures, situation of communication taking place, role of the communicators, background of each person, tone of speech, phrasing of sentences and the type of activities which the people are involved at that point in time are just some of the factors that can affect the receptivity of responses to the same words used.
There are large comparable differences in communicating behind a screen and seeing the people face to face and bridging or switching from casual and formal communication is a huge challenge. If one takes too much notice into factors and what to say in every situation, it would appear to the other party that what s/he is doing is too robotic. When all goes wrong, give a sincere apology or a simple smile, one may be forgiven.
Yes I do agree that hiding behind a screen feels more comfortable than facing the other party directly when communicating. The extra confidence and time lag allow one to put one’s ideas across to the other person better and more effectively. In addition, responses are not rushed and can be made with much more thought which may greatly prevent the mistake of losing one’s tongue and saying the wrong things unnecessarily. :)
ReplyDeleteAgreed. I still find communicating one directly (face-to-face) more sincere than emails and text messages. But when we're about to face the music, we would prefer to communicate behind a screen to avoid all the 'nasty' tones and actions. It takes a lot courage to actually speak to someone we're unfamiliar with.
ReplyDeleteCommincating behind a screen is something we're comfortable with. Sometimes it's good to step out of the comfort zone.
Can't agree more! I personally don't fancy hiding behind a screen to communicate with people, though the convenience is undeniable, the sincerity falls short. Being able to see first-hand responses and hear the tone to it appeals a lot more to me than a short reply in text or in email. I often encounter the problem of not being able to interpret the short reply properly as much of the needed information lies behind the screen.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you on the apologies part, but again, apologising sincerely requires much tact as well!
I agree, thinking of communication as a science could result in insincere formulised responses and as you say if you make inappropriate comments most people will accept an apology. Errors of judgement in these matters are inevitable.
ReplyDeleteMrs Richardson