In 2015 let’s use our phones for… talking

We can text, email, Tweet, and Facebook. We can GChat or Skype, and “say congrats” to our network on LinkedIn. And we can do it all conveniently through our handheld mobile devices.

As we welcome the new year into our lives, it’s hard not to notice that we live in a hyperconnected world where communication can be constant, yet many of us are more isolated and anonymous than ever.

Everything we write is recorded – our words are eternal. Thus, we have naturally become more careful with what we say.

In public, we share less and less with more and more. We mask our true selves with the veils of anonymity and the distances our networks traverse. Interpersonally, the barriers of civility and the quality of our language crumbles, enabling us to write things in ways we might never say face to face.

Whilst serving our natural social instincts to “keep in touch”, we have demoted one of the most unique and valuable tools we have. Our voices.

Text is easy and quick. But let’s not forget, that our voices are authentically human.

In 2015, we’ll see more and more tech tools that invite us to text to more people from more devices. Embrace the power that technology offers you, don’t forget what is uniquely yours. Your voice.

Nearly 140 years ago, Alexander Graham Bell made a call to his assistant Thomas Watson saying “Mr. Watson – come here – I want to see you.” This call was the start of something special, and these would be the very first words spoken on a telephone.

So as we make a start into the new year I’d like to make a suggestion. Let’s use our phones for talking.