Communication in a Modern Age

I'm no novice in the modern age. I field emails from my BlackBerry wherever I am (which I did all this weekend), tweet, text, blog and use Facebook for a variety of "networking" purposes. Earlier this year, my phone died on a Friday night when I'd left my charger at work and my parents showed up at my apartment on Sunday morning to make sure I hadn't been left for dead in some alley (since they couldn't get through to me all weekend). Eight years ago, when my travel softball career was coming to a close, none of this was even fathomable. The cell phone I had was for emergencies, the "blog" I had was a typical teenager's diary that shouldn't have been published for the world to see, I didn't text, and neither Twitter nor Facebook existed. Today, though, it feels as if I can't survive without any of these tools. (Side note: two other things I didn't have eight years ago that seem to be with me everywhere I go now are Pandora and my iPod.)

I work for a technologically-advanced company. We work on Twitter and Facebook and email (and more, of course); so I've used these tools for business and pleasure. (Another side note: making the transition from using Facebook for pleasure as a college student to using Facebook as a professional was one of the most difficult in my life. LOL.)

But what has surprised me in the recent past (as in the last few months) is that the girls on my softball teams use these "new media" tools as a means of communication with their coaches. Sure, I'll text my boss to let her know when I'm running a few minutes late for work--because it's less confrontational than a phone call, haha--but I'd never really use these tools to communcate with my colleagues for work purposes. That is, I'd never send someone a Facebook message or Tweet to remind them of an upcoming deadline. So my online interaction with the girls I coach has surprised me, if nothing else.

I never would have texted--or even called--a coach in the past just to "shoot the shit." Then again, saying that I "never would have" is a bit presumptious. I never could have. Hell, I didn't even call my teammates in the off season--we called ourselves "Summer Sisters" because we were SO close during the tournament season, and only during the tournament season. But I suppose if I'd had the means to be my teammates and coaches' "friends" on Facebook, I would have. I would have uploaded pictures of us from tournaments; I would've complained online about how boring practice was. :-D

These tools really open up a whole new means of connecting with others through sharing of information; and I know I shouldn't be scared of it. I'm already "friends" with my clients on social networking tools like Facebook and Twitter. What's the difference between them and the girls on my team? I still have to watch my language, monitor (and sometimes censor) the pictures of me that are posted and, generally speaking, "keep it clean."

I guess my big fear is that the internet cannot replace real, face-to-face, human interaction. Everything is seen only as it's written and most things are seen after they're already done. Everything's left up for interpretation and when that happens, things can be misconstrued very easily. Recently, one of the coaches brought to our attention some "unsavory" social media posts from girls on the team. They're teenagers, so it's to be expected to a certain degree. And, whereas we'll have to have a little talk about the permanence and visibility of what you write on the internet with the girls, I absolutely know that I'll also have to keep a close eye on what I write out there.

It's a strange world compared to what it was eight years ago. I look forward to becoming closer with the girls I coach and I don't want these lines (of communcation) to get in the way. For now, though, I'll tread lightly until I get a better feel for how thin the ice really is.