On the world there are about 7.7 billion people. Yet when we think about communicating with someone we often refer to chatting to someone on social media.
The social media has created a lot of new opportunities, but it has also reduced the amount of times we talk to stranger, or even how often we talk to people we already know. What is the last time you went out and you realised that everyone was more on their phone than talking with the others there. It’s all to easy to easy when we have a problem to take our smartphone or laptop and search for the information we need. Granted, for things like how do I know how to increase the size of the letter, how get back lost information or what activities are being organised in my neighborhoud you can find it all online. The question is not if you can find it but how accurate the information is. The first question will hopefully not be different, but the organised activities nearby may change depending on whether or not their is communication about it online.
Silence is golden when you can’t think of a good answer. – Muhammad Ali
When you are looking for an answer people will offer to give you the answer. While it’s great to receive help you always have to question where they are coming from and how the answer is being formed. While it’s better to be silent than giving a wrong answer is important, not everyone will hold themselves to it. It’s your responsibility to consider the source of the answer and to find out whether or not it’s true. For example a soft drink company will not have the most accurate information on how healthy or unhealthy their drinks are. While with all the rules on it their information may be correct, but you always have to consider the possibility that it’s wrong and gather other information to confirm it.
The more frequent you consider asking real people for answers you will start to build a network. They will know that instead of solely trusting the internet you are willing and trusting them to give an answer on your question. This type of trust is an awesome starting point for a friendship or even for a potential future businesspartner. Don’t be afraid to ask questions even to people you don’t know. For example you are invited for a birthday drink for your friend. Instead of holding multiple drinks they invite everyone at once. This is the perfect moment to meet new people. If you are interested in a topic one of them is talking about feel free to ask questions. You will not only learn something new but you will also seem more interesting to the person you are asking the question.