When I was growing up, I sent hand-written letters to my grandma and if I wanted to talk to someone, I picked up the phone and called. Now with email, social media and texting, communicating is easier and quicker, but is it better?

Texting has single-handedly changed the way people date and the way people communicate with their families, friends and coworkers. If I want to make dinner plans with a friend, I send a text like this: “R U around on Sat 4 din?” It’s quick and easy, but there are implications of texting taking over as our main form of communication. When texting first began, I remember I hated it. I thought, I can’t accurately express myself in such a short amount of space. Now it is a standard form of communicating. Last month, I sent more than 1,000 text messages.

I came across an article on Ragan.com, “4 ways texting is killing our communication skills,” written by Susan Young, that makes some good points about texting and how it can impact other areas of communication.

Consider the following:

• Texting reduces the need for in-depth conversations. When you pick up the phone or meet with someone in person, you often learn about what is going on in someone’s life. Texting offers little room for that. By sending a quick text full of abbreviations, you reduce the possibility for in-depth, meaningful dialogue. Additionally, you can’t pick up on body language or tone through text messages. I had a friend who would send texts in all caps and I always thought they were mad, but in truth, you can’t really tell the tone of a conversation through text.
• Texting dumbs down grammar and spelling. Rarely do people adhere to proper grammar and spelling when texting. I often shorten words or ignore misspellings when I text, but this can often spill over into other communications and reinforces this bad habit. Additionally, Young points out that children who text and use shortened forms of communication are not practicing the writing and communications skills they need for school and the workforce.
• Texting distracts from life. People typically don’t take calls while in meetings, dinner parties or while spending time with the family. However, because texting is quick and easy, they’ll often send a quick message. However, as Young points out, “Texting pulls our focus away from the people and tasks we are experiencing in the moment, which deprives us of being completely present in our lives.” I was recently on a family trip and we were at a restaurant. My mom, dad and I were all on our phones sending texts. My grandma said, “Look at you all. You are all doing it!” I realized that I wasn’t fully engaged because I was half in another conversation through text.
• Texting isn’t always clear.  When you combine short, abbreviated messages with the inability to detect tone and body language, there are a lot of opportunities to read too much into a text. People analyze what they anticipate a message meant or didn’t mean. I’ve also found that I cut down my messages via text which doesn’t provide enough context. This can cause misunderstandings.

Texting does serve a purpose. It is helpful to make quick plans or update someone when you don’t want to disturb them, but don’t let it replace your daily communication with people.  So much can get lost between the letters, symbols and emoticons.

TTYL

In September 2012, I began an internship at Communiqué PR and it has been an amazing learning experience. My internship has allowed me to gain a better first-hand understanding of the PR profession by giving me insight into how clients and journalists work, as well as providing me with a taste of agency life. By assisting on a variety of projects and observing the team, I have come to the conclusion that there are five competencies that are truly crucial to one’s success in PR. They are as follows:

1)      Being Action-Oriented –When it comes to certain business opportunities it is often first come, first served. The world is very competitive and those who are able to move quickly and with agility will be the ones who successfully capitalize on prospects presented to them. Hesitation is often the reason one may be beaten by a competitor and is typically caused by procrastination, perfectionism, risk avoidance, or all three.

Procrastination is something with which we are all familiar. Whether it comes from fatigue or being overwhelmed, it seriously detracts from one’s ability to be action-oriented. A simple way to avoid this pitfall? Break up a seemingly large, overwhelming task into smaller, more easily accomplished parts.

Perfectionism is another quality that can take away from your ability to be action-oriented. Though paying attention to detail is a critical part of this business, obsessing over a project can slow down and hinder its development. My favorite quote, when thinking about perfectionism, is “Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.”

Lastly, being action-oriented will require you to take risks. This can mean possible failure. Don’t let this intimidate you. Mistakes and failures are chances to learn.

2)      Thinking Creatively– Creativity is a skill that can be developed and improved, just like any other important ability. A common mistake is considering creativity an innate quality, however, being creative does not mean being necessarily artistic or poetic. It is simply the ability to think outside of the box.

It is important to keep in mind that being creative can sometimes mean that your ideas might be uncertain, or maybe even impractical (avoiding perfectionism is important here as well.)

Brainstorming is a simple way to start thinking more creatively. When brainstorming, think of the rules of improvisational comedy: Never say no (you can say “yes, but…”).

Creativity begins with freedom, structure can be added later. Ideas that may seem crazy and impractical can often spark some of the best thinking. Consider Microsoft’s original vision statement: a computer on every desk, in every home. Initially, it was so out there it was “kind of a silly idea.” Now that this vision has seemingly come to pass, the company has changed its overarching goal. For another reference on creativity read Fostering Creativity on the Communiqué blog.

3)      Maintaining a Customer Service Ethic – In most companies, success requires satisfied customers. While you can’t make everyone happy all the time, if you listen to criticisms and complaints you can work toward improving the issues that have been noted. Staying in contact with your customers and building strong relationships with them will allow you to anticipate their needs and allow your customers to contact you about any problems they may be having.

A “customer” can be anyone that you answer to and who is exchanging something of value with you, including clients and supervisors who can easily fall into this category.

4)      Knowing How to Prioritize – Overwhelming yourself with too many tasks will leave you feeling stressed and unable to put forth the required amount of effort into each one.

I am often approached with a large variety of tasks that include anything from organizing the magazines and newspapers to writing a transcription or developing a press list. When trying to prioritize these tasks I often take into consideration the deadline of a task, if it affects the ability of the overall project to move forward, and the pros and cons. If there is a deadline to be met, take that into consideration and make sure you allow yourself enough time before then to effectively complete it. There is a possibility that the task you have been assigned is preventing the continuation of the overall project. If this is the case, it is important that you are not the reason it cannot move forward and that other people involved will also have enough time to finish their parts.

Lastly, by reviewing the pros and cons you will be able to accurately decide between two different assignments and evaluate how much attention should be delegated to each.

5)      Possessing the Ability to Internalize Feedback – When receiving feedback, listen. Though you may not agree with all the criticism you receive, it is important that you do not dismiss feedback defensively.

Take notes on constructive criticism, and work toward improving these issues. Demonstrating that you are capable of learning from the feedback and that you take it seriously is important.

People will appreciate that you not only heard what they have to say, but you value it. When addressing the feedback you received, ask others for help, be open to new ideas, and avoid being defensive or denying that there are things you can improve upon. When taken into consideration, feedback can allow you to develop into a more polished and balanced professional.

These five traits are essential for success, regardless of industry or role. Each is challenging, but each can be improved upon. As we approach the new year, consider focusing on one or more of these as you move forward in your position.

Have you tried focusing on improving one of these traits for yourself? What did you find helpful?