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Little Tricks to Make Life Easier MCI (P) 116/04/2016
Digital Time Thieves By Alka Chandiramani
T
his issue is filled with all sorts of time savers, short cuts designed to make life easier. And it really does seem like we need these little tricks more than ever, right? Where does the time go? A lot of it is being eaten up by time spent on our devices. With around 2.5 billion internet users, fifteen million texts being sent every minute and many people now spending more time online gaming than sleeping, you can see the effects of the digital age everywhere. People walk down busy streets reading their phones and drivers sit at traffic signals skimming through their messages. Research shows that on average we check our smartphones every six and half minutes! Sometimes, it seems we are slaves (and not masters) to our digital devices. There’s no question: the digital screen has changed the world in which we live, but defining it as good or bad depends on your own perspective. There is a fundamental human need to be socially connected in one way or another and the ability to stay connected 24/7 is a source of instant gratification. Even when you feel physically alone, you still feel connected through another platform. Mother Teresa once said the greatest suffering is being lonely, feeling unloved and having no one. For many, the digital age has helped alleviate that very suffering.
But how does constant connection affect our brains? Are these connections real? Has too much digital screen time and connectedness led to irrational behaviors, especially in many teenagers? Maybe. Studies show if there's too much arousal emotionally, the medial temporal in the brain gets activated and the hippocampus shuts down. When that happens, dopamine levels are lower and the feel good factor of being connected creates a missing link. This might explain why cyber bullying is affecting many young students emotionally and psychologically. As a parent myself, learning more about the social brain has given me some food for thought. It's like the iceberg principle: what we see on the surface (what we show people through digital media) is just the tip of what lies deep beneath the consciousness. And the best way to do that is one-on-one communication, real communication. Human connectedness in this digital world is very important, enabling us to ask better questions and to seek better answers. But if it’s so important, what does the future hold as we seem to eliminate more and more face-to-face interaction? In my experience as a human resources professional, in order to move forward, we need a 360-degree approach
where we combine technological advancements with added elements of human interconnectedness. Digital connections are important and part of the world in which we live. But it’s equally important to see facial expressions and body language and to hear voices. Face-to-face interaction takes communication to a more realistic level where we are able to understand verbal and non-verbal language. Studies show that 55% of communication is body language, 38% is the tone of voice and 7% is the actual words spoken. In his book Nonverbal Communication, Albert Mehrabian states, "When there are inconsistencies between attitudes communicated verbally and posturally, the postural component should dominate in determining the total attitude that is inferred." Basically? Reading between the lines is key. And no computer or smart phone can replace looking into somebody’s eyes and listening, really listening. As Margaret J. Wheatley once said, "Listening is such a simple act. It requires us to be present and that takes practice, but we don't have to do anything else. We don't have to advise, to coach or sound wise. We just have to be willing to sit there and listen."
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