There has been a lot of chatter across the country about the most popular class in the history of Yale University, Psychology and the Good Life, which explains how to live a happy life. Apparently, GenText® is struggling with the happiness question.
The rewards of relationships with others play a significant role in the happiness equation. Face-to-face, eye-to-eye is the way to authentically build ties that bind. Using text to discuss personal or professional issues or make relationship decisions is a recipe for conflict and unhappiness.
Here’s an aha moment for GenText™. Texting, Snapchat, Twitter and the like are for transactional communications. “The meeting is at 7pm” is a fact. It is not emotional. Smart apps are an artificial means of human connection. Faceless, voiceless, tone-deaf tech will never build a relationship or buy happiness. If it did, human desire to be together physically would all but evaporate.
I use a dry eraser marker to write key points (that I want to remember) on my mirror. To seed these nuggets in my information-overloaded brain, I read them while I’m brushing my teeth. Since meaningful relationships are one of the major routes to happiness, here are tech rules from Tina Gilbertson’s June 9 Psychology Today article to embed in your mirror or at least your mind’s eye.
1. Complaints, insults, explanations and apologies are all face-to-face conversations.
2. Questioning other’s behavior, heavy topics and bombshells deserve a phone call or visit.
3. Secrets and private information should be shared via call (not voicemail) or in-person.
Take a good long look in the mirror because living 1 – 3 listed above takes the courage of your convictions. Adhering to these guidelines will test you, but in doing so you will simultaneously build meaningful relationships and your self-respect. It will have you saying, “Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the happiest of all?”