Is Conversation Dead?

By no means is it shocking to say that teenagers live on their cell phones. As a GenXer, I grew up as a teen that spent hours talking on the telephone. (The thing attached to the wall that had a cord.) I can still hear my mother yelling, “GET OFF THE PHONE NOW! Someone may be trying to call.” Yes, I used a phone to talk. That is no longer the case today. I find my teens watching videos and movies, playing video games, checking the weather, checking social media, and texting. I am the ONLY one that actually calls them to talk. As a parent and a communications coach, I have asked myself, “What has happened to the art of conversation?”

My teens refuse to talk on a phone. They tell me it’s uncomfortable and weird. I fear that face-to-face communication is being replaced with technology. My son would rather send a message via Snap Chat than use his voice to talk with someone. My kids ask me what to say when they are forced to use a phone to speak with another person. Is this generation developing “phone phobia”? Watching teens ask someone out or break up with someone by texting is an easy way out of an awkward or uncomfortable conversation. This easy way out is not preparing our youth for a work environment where a lot of difficult discussions happen face-to-face.

Our kids will need to develop the ability to talk on the phone. The workplace still uses phones to conduct business. This seems like such a basic skill, but it is a skill that a whole generation is lacking. Talking on the phone is one way of presenting yourself to others. I hope that teens will put down their cell phones and talk to one another using their voices and stop typing out their thoughts using their fingers.

Spread the love

Author

Similar posts

Tips for Leading Effective Meetings

Our coaching team appreciates the challenge of masterminding the right mix of talent, personalities, and action items. Fortunately, easy tweaks often go a long way to enhance comfort, participation, and awareness of nuances in a team member’s behavior. Recently, I worked with a senior leader in financial services who felt it was his responsibility to control the agenda and results of all meetings; in fact, he considered it part of his job. He was baffled that his

Spread the love

Listen to Your Gut

Microexpressions are brief, involuntary facial movements that reveal a person’s true emotions. They may last for only a fraction of a second and are often difficult to detect with the naked eye, but they can provide valuable insight into a person’s inner thoughts and feelings. In order to use microexpressions effectively in communication, it is important first to understand their significance. Microexpressions are believed to be universal and biologically based, meaning that they are hardwired

Spread the love

Management Communication: Digital, Telephone, or Face-to-Face?

I was recently told, “You’re not going to believe this, but one of my friends was just let go for laying off her employees by email.” Imagine how her colleagues must have felt when their termination notice was communicated electronically; unappreciated, disposable, and confused. An email disaster like this may sound unusual, but I regularly hear variations of similar stories in the business world. Over the past decade, email and text messages have become increasingly

Spread the love

QUESTIONS? NEED HELP?

Tell us what’s on your mind: