I went to a very engaging meeting with 40+ parents at the Abington Friends School the other night. The topic was Parenting in the Digital Age, which is right in my wheelhouse. At the meeting, I found that all, not just most, of the parents were there because they are scared of the technology their kids are using. Not just scared, but also unaware. I think over time we have proven that not knowing about something invariably brings about some level of fear. And these parents talked a lot about fear and not understanding.
I shared this story with another group and the topic focused on how tech changes non verbal communication. The point was that texting is bad because 93% of communication is non verbal. Immediately, I doubted the truth of the number. I mean, I worked 8 years with people and didn’t see them. So I researched using technology.
I found a couple posts before getting down to the heart of the matter.
Post one Summary: 60-90% nonverbal and is the most important part.
http://www.nonverbalgroup.com/2011/08/how-much-of-communication-is-really-nonverbal/
Post two Quote: “However, it’s worth noting that Mehrabian has since noted “…Unless a communicator is talking about their feelings or attitudes, these equations are not applicable”. In essence, the 7% figure can be misleading as it could imply that the words we say are of relatively little importance. This isn’t the case – the above equation is only really relevant when the words we are saying are at odds with the body language or tone of voice we’re using.”
http://www.bodylanguageexpert.co.uk/communication-what-percentage-body-language.html
Post Thread Breaks it down…
http://www.study-body-language.com/Verbal-and-non-verbal-communication.html
So, that last post really sums it up for me. I get that non verbal communication is truly important, when talking about certain things. But you couldn’t communicate without being impeccable with your words.