All Posts, Off Topic

TWIT While You’re Ahead! The Downside of 140 Characters or less

Every second of every day millions of tweets, status updates, post and comments flutter through the air waves seeking their intended targets. At home, work or on the road with our laptops and cell phones we have the ability to tell the world everything we do, as we do it, and hear what others have to say about it instantly. The digital diary of our lives and those we share it can be viewed, reviewed and interpreted immediately by those we chose to express ourselves to. This inevitably leaves the opening for the abbreviated versions of our feelings or ideas to be misconstrued unwittingly and taken in the wrong context.

Now don’t get me wrong, I love the concept. Use it too. It’s just that as this becomes more and more the norm for communication I wonder if a little more thought should be put into what we say. This doesn't stem from a personal experience mind you, so all of my friends or followers and ect can breathe easy now, lol. What got me thinking about this was another stream I was watching. Basically I took the weekend off to spend some time with my family. When Monday rolled around and I was catching up on everything that happened while I was out I came across a feed between two friends that I was not sure how to take. Then I began wondering how each of them had taken what the other said also. My first impression was of offense that he/she would have been replied to that way, what was theirs? Or was I just misreading to original post becasue I was feeling a little pressured to get caught up?

You see, if you think about it, unless someone specifically posts their emotions in their update we, those who read it, will transfer our own current emotions into what they wrote. If your feeling happy you’ll read happiness into most posts and, likewise, if your feeling sad you may read sadness into others updates as well. With this form of open and public communication that is also condensed into the size of a text message there is an integral and required component missing from a true conversation, feeling. Feelings are the basic foundations of communication and humanity. People being able to relate, empathize and share an emotional experience with another person all starts from being able sympathize with that individuals current state.

When we speak with our friends, associates, co-workers and so on, whether face to face or over the phone, there is always the conveyance of their feelings when they speak to you. You can see it in their face, their body language or just hear it in the tone of their voice. You can then process this input to make appropriate and meaningful conversation based on the other persons emotionality.

Email was bad about this also but at least with email you had an unlimited amount of characters to describe what you were feeling and it’s more personal. Just like writing a letter an email is targeted only to those who you feel will understand what you’re trying to say and respond in kind. Being that we are for the most part a verbal society the need to express ourselves and communicate is as constant as the need to breathe. So what starts to happen when that need is restricted? If we don’t die we adapt. Unfortunately adaptation typically is an evolutionary process that can take thousands if not millions of years.

Again, this is not about condemning or chastising the technology. I love it, I use it and I promote it but that doesn't mean I don't think it’s flawed. To be more accurate I should say that we’re flawed in respect to properly using the technology. Where do we go when a simple update, abbreviated to the bare minimum, looking for reassurance or enlightenment is treated, unintentionally, with sarcasm or condemnation? What about the innocent annotation to hook for lunch being misconstrued as a offer for sex? Or the hundreds of other little things, every tweet, every update, every post leaves open to the interpretation of those reading it whether it was meant for them or not?

So what do we do about it? How do we learn to communicate relevantly through such limited means? Do we preclude each update with an emotion such as “:sad: Today was a heck of a day!” or “:happy: Today was a heck of a day!” so our feelings are not transparent but blatantly obvious? What about the developers including emoticons with every message so you have a little bitty face to show everyone how you feel? Or, better yet, what about us, as users of the technology, just realizing that instant messaging doesn't have to be instantaneous. Sometimes it may be prudent to think before we tweet. That extra 15 to 30 seconds may just help to make someone's day rather than ruin it.

Maybe this seems like I’m making a big deal for such a little issue and I’d probably agree. I don’t think millions of people are being misunderstood, offended or hurt. Nor do I think more safeguards needs put in place to ensure everyone's feelings are protected like some giant textual daycare. I do believe most people understand that this form of communication isn’t the way to really express private personal issues… yet. I also think we are heading that way though and maybe, just maybe we should start thinking about that.