“The world is essentially a big communication system.”
In March 2020, we shut the world down. And frankly, it frightened me. Now, it didn’t only frighten me, it frightened a lot of people. There was just too much that was unknown. But there was something more specific that frightened me. Here was my thought.
The world is essentially a big communication system. Each of us receives communication and we act as relay points for it. We receive, and then we also give communication. And the world is set up with many communication systems. Businesses are communication systems. Relationships are communication systems. And it occurred to me that all of our communications were going to change drastically in both quality and quantity. So my question back then was, what happens when we have 90% fewer interactions? And the interactions we have are very different. They’re more distant through the medium of the internet. I mean, that is a massive seed change in the world in how we do things and it’s not for the better. So my solution was I started sending out videos to my clients, and I subsequently started a Facebook group.
Communicate More in Life
“And I think if we look at a lot of the problems that we’re now experiencing, they are problems of changed communications…People are hurting themselves by communicating less and communicating in ways that are of lower quality”
I called it the Coronation. And it was largely to encourage more and better communication, just to help people through. And I think if we look at a lot of the problems that we’re now experiencing, they are problems of changed communications. And it’s really put us on edge. Now, on a practical day-to-day basis, we notice this, no one answers their phone anymore. And I think everyone’s experiencing this. And I’ve had conversations with people, with friends, and with clients and with business owners, and they’re all noticing that people themselves have changed. To some degree, people tend to be more inhibited, quicker to anger, more irritable, more scattered, and certainly less communicative.
Now, I want to make an argument for better and more communication, but I want it to be a practical argument. People are hurting themselves by communicating less and communicating in ways that are of lower quality. These are practical daily effects, not to mention what it does to society. So for example, I have people on the program that suddenly I can’t reach. They are supposed to text daily. That’s the agreement. Suddenly they don’t text. I try calling and texting them. My staff tries calling and texting them. We don’t hear from them.
Weight Loss Program Success
“It has become acceptable to not communicate at all.”
Kids would call this being ghosted. So why the ghosting? Generally, it happens because a person goes off the program and then they find themselves ashamed. And the last thing they want to do is communicate about it. Now, very often there’s a technical problem. There’s something we can fix. Something has changed. Maybe the person isn’t doing meal preparations and they find themselves in a situation where they “ have to eat something”. So it’s something that they can be helped with, but it has become acceptable to not communicate at all. This is one of the more insidious problems with communication, is how the standards have changed. And we all do it, right? We get calls, we don’t answer them. Or as just happened 10 seconds ago, we receive a call, we answer it, and the person hangs up on us, because probably they were planning on leaving a message. But it’s the kind of thing where everyone is doing it to where it’s become, again, standard operating procedure. Let’s rewind the clock back to the pre-internet age. Even before that, let’s rewind the clock to a time when everyone only had one phone in their house. You would think with one phone there’d be less telephone communication, but there was more. When the phone rang, we couldn’t wait to answer it to see who it was.
There was no caller ID, there was no answering machine, those hadn’t been created yet. And so it was like, “Oh, what a wonderful mystery this is. Who could it be?” And now that we have so many ways to communicate, the means have exploded, and so many ways to delay and put off communication. Now, nobody answers a phone or a text or an email. I’m exaggerating. Of course, it’s not that no one does. It’s not that it doesn’t happen, but it’s really changed in this. Standards have changed, especially with things that are uncomfortable, with things that we don’t want to deal with or don’t want to deal with at that moment.
Too Much Information
“Information has increased exponentially and it keeps increasing…the result of that is people are actively trying to prevent communication. They’re trying to stop it because of its ability to overwhelm.”
And there’s another phenomenon, and actually, it’s part of the same phenomenon, which is that information has increased exponentially and it keeps increasing. So we’re inundated with more information to the point where there’s so much coming in from so many different sources, the old sources, friends and family, and people in our jobs and in our lives. So we have that. But then we also have all of these newer data sources, digital sources, social media, phones, and the internet and cable and streaming. And so imagine yourself sitting there and there’s just a lot coming in at an overwhelming amount, a confusing and frustrating amount of information coming in.
And I feel that the result of that is people are actively trying to prevent communication. They’re trying to stop it because of its ability to overwhelm. So this is getting worse. And I don’t know where it ends up. I do know that it doesn’t work. And again, it doesn’t work on a macro level, but it doesn’t work on a micro level to get what we want. It doesn’t work, certainly for clients doing a program.
Consultations for Weight Loss
“But that’s not communication. That’s just a flood of information coming in. Communication means give and take back and forth. And the only way to combat that is to communicate more, but in a proper way, in a give-and-take, in a natural form of give-and-take communication.”
When we specifically set up a communication system for supporting and informing and educating weight loss clients, we run into this factor that most people, I think at some level, are sure that the only way to survive is to communicate less, to stop all of that communication. But that’s not communication. That’s just a flood of information coming in. Communication means give and take back and forth. And the only way to combat that is to communicate more, but in a proper way, in a natural form of give-and-take communication. You receive information, you give information in a way that can forward people.
“There’s actually a magic to communication when it’s done right.”
There’s actually a magic to communication when it’s done right. And again, this is a practical thing. I’m reminded of a recent client, we’ll call her Rachel. Rachel had experienced a family trauma and she was in a bad way as a result for a long time. She came into the office and she had let her health and her body go. It wasn’t her focus, but it was causing her further trauma and misery. And we had a conversation and she told me what went on. And I listened and I made comments. And it was a conversation, right? A conversation is such a small thing. And a little later, while we were getting her ready for her program, she pulled me aside and she said, “you know, I already feel so much better.” And it was because we had a conversation, an open, honest, communicative, normal old-fashioned give-and-take conversation. And it was also because it was a possibility of hope and control and regaining control. There was a plan, there was a pathway. She was lighter before she left the office. Maybe not physically, but certainly emotionally. And she subsequently did the program and did great. And her life is very different. So again, the solution is more communication, but actual real communication. When there’s too much coming in, we need to shut off those points from which they’re coming and we need to have actual one-on-one speaking.
Last point, I have a friend, we talk about these kinds of highfalutin ideas, sometimes what’s happening with the world and what’s happening with individuals. He actually had t-shirts made up recently, and I’m going to paraphrase it, but it’s something like ‘Silicon Valley Digital AI-generated data is not the solution. The solution is one-on-one communication.’ I think he’s right.
At ThinTech we provide in-depth consultations to address your weight loss. A consultation for weight loss is important because it provides personalized guidance, ensures safety, and helps you create a sustainable plan that aligns with your goals and needs. It can be a crucial step in achieving long-term success in your weight loss journey.
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