I grew up in the 50s through the 60s and into the mid-70s in Chicago, in a group named the Baggers. I strongly believe that most of my friends who became very successful business executives, teachers, police officers, and owners of companies achieved their success because of the social skills and the relationships they formed within the group.
I've asked them about this over the years, and they agree. We are all convinced that we learned these social traits in our teens, and just by hanging out. We were also fortunate not having grown up with the electronic tools people have today, because we had to interact with others and learn the value of street smarts. We had to use our relationships and interpersonal skills to help create our futures.
We worked and played as a team, won and lost, and experienced life. We worked at being friendly and establishing friends. We learned how to socialize, negotiate, communicate, and read body language. Sizing someone up was an art as well. And we figured out who we shouldn't hang with, who the BS-ers were, and who to trust -- skills that contributed to future success.
In our conversations, we also feel concerned that today's parents are not encouraging their kids to go out on their own and make it. That many young people are getting too comfortable staying home and interacting via games, texting, Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube. They have not experienced how to interact with others in social situations, which will eventually hurt them in business. In my opinion, these social media tools are another excellent communication tactic like email, direct mail, PR, and ads.
But are these great tools going to replace being sociable -- what we consider to be essential life skills? Again social media is all the rage now and its impact is life changing and I personally use all these channels to be more efficient and market Avnet Inc. (NYSE: AVT). But is it really social? I don't mean in the sense of staying in touch or being nice or courteous to people, I mean sociable... interacting.
I've concluded the word "social" should be removed from "social media" and the whole thing should be changed to "digital media" or "emedia." What are your thoughts?
@t.alex That all depends on whom you ask. Some people recently boasted on Twitter that they zapped their LI profiles because they felt they gained nothing from a presence there. On the other hand, some say that LI generates more leads and business connection for them than any other site. I used to be a bit more involved on LI groups than I am now because most of what interests me that I'd like to get feedback on, I share on Google+.
I believe on one hand you are right, tech interaction "keeps" away people, but on the other hand, it could represent a good step forward. For giving you an example, several tech companies have adopted socials for improving customers support services. Focusing on this sector, we could say everybody is interested in having near real updates on how is requested is going to elaborate , then I believe socials services sound really good for that.
Well, speaking for my self, I can tell you I like your approach, even for major social services, at least for now, main understanding is not to provide full email plat, but the integration with. This point raises, in my opinion, an additional topic. It has been proven companies which have adopted socials, have intensified messages exchanged by introducing virtual (false) indentities (or followers). Similar risks are present by using email, so the feeling is social is good, but how do we trust digital identities from endusers perspective?
Speech eases communication and i personally feel we can deliver our thoughts in a crisp manner. I consider chatting waste of time, meeting them or giving them a call will finish what you have to convey.
We have been talking about Facebook all the time, and the bad sides of it. How about professional ones like Linkedin. Of course Linkedin recently had a bad reputation of retrieving personal information from their iPhone app, and exposed millions of user passwords. Other than that, Linkedin is pretty good site isn't it?
Good point Susan--the terms "social" and "teenager" don't belong in the same sentence. Back in my day, the coolest thing in the world was a phone in your room, preferably with your own phone number. (A "Princess" phone sent the average female tween into orbit.) If it isn't texting, it would be something else.
I think the difference between our use of texting or voice is it is more judicious, as you and Ariella point out.
Susan, Sorry to disappoint you but you still don't completely fit in with the "kids" in social media and communication use. Yes, they do chat and they prefer texting but e-mail? That's so 1990s as far as kids are concerned. Please don't leave them voice mail either because they won't check since texting is faster and they can quickly decide whether or not to ignore your message.
I would dive deeper into the differences between "us" and "kids" but won't because each time we adopt their latest preferences they switch on us and move on to the next, next thing!
@Susan Personally, I like email if I want to convey some information without bothering someone at a time that may be inconvenient. However, if I want to be certain that the person gets my message, I am more likely to call. I don't like texts, which I find have the intrusive character of phone calls -- demanding immediate response -- without the courtesy of actually speaking to someone. However, introverts are said to prefer written communication to spoken (in part because writing allows more time to gather one's thoughts and frame the words more exactly), which could be another reason some people favor email and texts.
"Mind you ask any 15 year old anything and they will always disagree with you ;-)"
Maybe that's because most of the adults seem to have forgotten that they were 15 once. ;)
What depends on the frame of reference? I don't believe age matters as much as common sense matters. MInd you, I have talked with very sensible 15 year-olds, and with some 50 year-olds that well, they don't even seem to know why they exist.
More than age I would consider time and space. It's not the same being a 15 y/o in 2012 that in the 90s, 80s, 70s, 60s, 50s, 40s, 30s, 20s, 10s, or 1800s. This is precisely what people don't seem to understand.
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Join EBN contributor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday August 23, 2012, at 11:00 a.m. EST for a live chat on how electronic manufacturers in Thailand have shored up their supply chain to reduce the impact of future natural disasters.
Peter Drucker famously said "Trying to predict the future is like trying to drive down a country road at night with no lights while looking out the back window." Yet in the razor's-edge world of electronics—with a lean supply chain and just-in-time demands—the need to know the future is vital.
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You've heard the saying "the No. 1 supply chain risk is your people." That hasn't always been the case. But today's complex global supply chain requires a new type of multitalented employee. It's one who understands, finance, marketing, economics, is savvy with technology, graceful with relationships and can think analytically.
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