We are increasingly communicating via text message and email rather than face to face, we have hundreds of online “friends” yet we may not know the people next door, and the first place we look for information is Google.
Future Minds: How the Digital Age Is Changing Our Minds, Why This Matters, and What We Can Do About It
Wow! I’ve never used a smartphone for three months now.
And I still get the weird look from people every time I use my keypad phone in front of their faces when I have to respond to a call or an urgent text message.
The peculiar thing about using a keypad phone is that you’re not as compelled to have it in your hands all the time as you do with a smartphone. So what’s there to miss anyway? And people will only call you if it’s super urgent; they send you a text message when you’re unresponsive to something urgent online.
So, most of the time, my keypad phone sits in silence, except when receiving email authentication codes.
Yet, we are satisfied with simply connecting with our friends via messaging these days. And isn’t it the point of the net? To join us when distance makes it impossible?
But because of the convenience of messaging, we often neglect the power of face-to-face interactions and how it strengthens connections more than a text message, a video call, or an online chat. And can you still notice yourself zoning out with your smartphone when in a gathering with people you deeply care about?
It’s challenging to notice things and connect with people right next to you when you are so immersed in what’s happening in the other part of your world online.
jessa 