Recently I got an alert on the BB of a situation that I needed to follow up. I responded and asked for a contact number to reach out. After the exchange I realized that I could have BB to the person directly from the get. As I realized it I sent back that I had a lapse of memory no need to respond. The retort I received was that I had a senior moment. So it was! Since then I’ve been thinking about the instance and the impetus that got me moving forward on this blog, even though I thought about doing one for some time.
My premiere blog asked about a Blackberry Etiquette, since BB is all the rave these days.
Using technology is a must and we will all use it as we see fit. The use may be orderly, deliberate, impulsive, erratic, polite or intense. Folks pull out their gadgets anytime and all the time to send, receive, check, double check and some just to play with it. In the workplace however or when we are otherwise engaged with another live, person I think we should display some courtesy and common sense. Not every buzz needs attention so why interrupt present company. I guess I will have to take the high road anytime I think that the use could have been delayed or handled more respectfully or professionally. I could take a deep breath; I could roll my eyes or empathize with the user as over zealous or pretentious. If it is not an emergency or some information is expected that needs an immediate response, then perhaps we can view that user as lacking professionalism and business savvy. Courtesy and respect are as transparent as cellophane tape.
My main concern for what I think is the over-use of the BB is its impact on our psyche. What may appear as the potential diminution of the appreciation and respect for human interaction because of our attention to a gadget? Granted it is another individual we are responding to via the gadget however they are not in front of the user. That ought to count for something. After all how important do you feel when you are being ignored or paused while the attention is given to the BB and that use is not relevant to your discussion or meeting. Can you always appreciate that? Why not do unto others……, or maybe not!
I am a social scientist whose interest is in preserving the human species more or less as we know it. Understanding that we are who we are and what make us grow and self actualize, you know persevere, is nurture and nature. I am not archaeological. My thing is not to learn how or why things have become extinct or how we have adapted to interact socially with gadgets at the expense of relating person to person, after the fact. My thing is looking at the things we do or fail to do that result in these losses in a time sensitive manner. This way we can make adjustments and fix the problem as we move forward. Yeah, social science, archaeology, they are part and parcel of each other but for me I want to look at the unique things and nature in us and preserve it while we are still present. This way we can persevere, apply our resilience and continue to be loving, caring people. As I said earlier, technology is new, its now and the wave of the future. Our creative genius continues to produce more and more gadgets that we consider progress and forward thinking. These gadgets as we are seeing, although positive, can lead to more isolation or anti social behavior, while we are together, - if you can imagine that. I am one of those geeks; I like the gadgets and I have a good grasp of most of them, they are great. Let’s keep the use in perspective.
So, as I reflect on my senior moment, time so fleeting, I will from here on in talk about the little things that are dear to me, the things, encounters, experiences, episodes that we all see, have and find endearing or interesting, to be the focus of our exchanges.
Remember to come back here often, comment always and stop and smell the flowers everyday!
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