The adverse effects of technology
(NOTE) The following is an excerpt from my forthcoming book titled “REAL WORLD TRANSFORMATION – THE WORKFORCE MANUAL”.
Today our society is driven by technology and some would accuse me of being an anti-technologist. Having been actively involved with the information technology industry for the last 30 years, I can assure you that this is simply not true. I have witnessed many different technological improvements over the years, but what intrigues me the most is how it affects us socially. I am a firm believer that technology is bought more as a fashion statement than a practical application. Consequently, we tend to underuse or abuse technology, costing companies millions of dollars. Instead of “Ready, Aim, Fire” people tend to “Shoot, aim, ready.” In other words, people tend to implement the latest technology before understanding precisely what it is or what business need it fulfills. For me, this is putting the cart before the horse.
Perhaps the biggest difference between the 20th century and the 21st is how technology has changed the pace of our lives. We now expect to communicate with anyone on the planet in seconds, not days. We await information at our fingertips. We expect to be up and walking soon after a hip or knee replacement. Basically, we take a lot for granted. But this hectic pace has also altered the way we do business and live our lives. To illustrate, we want to solve problems immediately and have no patience for long-term solutions. Consequently, we tend to attack the symptoms instead of addressing the real problems, and we apply Band-Aids to defuse the moment instead of the tourniquets that are really needed. We easily settle for solving small problems instead of conquering big challenges. Personally, we tend to live for today, instead of planning for tomorrow. This mentality worries me a lot.
What if someone disconnected our technology? Would engineers still know how to design products? Would we still know how to ship a product or process an order? Would our financial transactions stop? Would the business stop? The answer, unfortunately, is yes. This highlights the blatant reliance we have developed on our technology and is cause for alarm. We are being driven by technology and not the other way around. By unplugging our technology, we are unplugging the human being. Do you think I’m wrong? See what happens the next time the power goes out in your office or home.
Due to the dominance of technology, people have allowed their socialization skills to diminish. Little things like common courtesy, appearance, and our ability to relate to others have taken a hit in the workplace. We may be effective at electronic communication, but we are becoming complete failures at social communication. Throughout the book I mention how people act on perceptions, right or wrong. These perceptions are based in large part on our ability to communicate, for example, through the messages we convey verbally or in writing, our appearance, our body language, and how we treat others. If we cannot communicate effectively in this capacity, no amount of technology will be able to alter the perceptions of our co-workers, our managers, our customers, our suppliers, or our friends and family.
To this end, I have introduced a new Bryce’s Law:
“As the use of technology increases, social skills decrease.”