Good Communication: A Lost Art?

 

With so many modes of communication available today, reaching out to someone has never been easier, or so it would seem. Text, email, WhatsApp, social media DMs… and yet, these very options often become excuses for not connecting at all. “You didn’t get my message? Oh, I sent it on WhatsApp.” Somewhere along the way, the simple phone call seems to have gone the way of the dinosaur.

Since the COVID shutdowns, I’ve felt that something essential has been lost in how we communicate, and perhaps more importantly, in how we relate to one another. The absence of physical presence and human touch may have contributed to a growing atmosphere of impatience and discourtesy. We’ve seen the effects play out vividly in service and retail industries, where employees were leaving jobs mid-shift after being verbally abused. And that’s before even touching on the state of political discourse.

So how do we fix this? How do we rebuild meaningful, respectful connections?

I don’t pretend to have the answer, but I do think it’s a conversation worth having. Real change may begin with something simple: acknowledging that the problem exists and choosing to be more intentional and mindful in how we communicate in our own lives.

Something to think about.

Dr Flavius Akerele III

The ETeam