Communication in the 21st Century

The business world has been transformed by methods of communication like this blog, along with email and ready access to information on the internet. At the risk of dating myself, my first experience with computers in the early '80's involved a draconian machine that required two floppy disks: one for the software and the other for the data storage.

The progress since those days has been remarkable, and those of my vintage are barely able to keep up with new technology. This progress is gradually creeping into the work of condominium management and governance, and conventional paper communication is being replaced by electronic means.

Email in particular has been both a blessing and a curse. Communicating simultaneously with a group of people has vastly improved efficiency, although we might feel somewhat tethered to our computers these days. On the dark side, email has opened the door for people to communicate at 2:00 in the morning after an evening in the bar, which doesn't enhance clarity or comprehension. There is also a much greater tendency for people to 'vent' in ways that they may not be inclined to when talking on the phone or face-to-face.

One of the disciplines this has taught me is batching my communication as much as possible. Rather than obsessively hitting the 'Get Mail' button every few minutes (or worse, allowing email to automatically download every five or ten minutes), deliberately setting aside the time two or three times a day to review and respond to email is an enormous time-saver. The baby boom generation was conditioned to immediately respond to communication, and the generation that has grown up with email and texting seems to be almost compulsive in their need to be in constant touch with friends, if not parents. Either way, it's no wonder we become a bit overwhelmed sometimes.

This blog is connected to a free Google email account, and costs nothing. I don't have to administer it by adding or deleting subscribers; the subscribers themselves do that. It's a very effective means of communication, and one that more condominium boards should explore. All of this technology has radically changed our condominium customers' expectations and created an instant world that a lot of us struggle to keep up with. As inundated as we are with information, we demand even more.

While the paperless society may not be appearing any time soon, there are ways, like a blog, to provide information to a group of interested people that is far more immediate and easy to access. The creation of a website for all condominiums might not be feasible, but exploring other means of  communicating quickly and effectively is easy and intuitive, and can go a long way toward enhancing the condominium lifestyle.

With one major proviso. Communication needs to be clear and concise, and not everyone is adept at that. So before you hit the send button or post that blog, make sure you re-read it. As I previewed this, I saved myself from the embarrassment of two fairly critical mistakes in a post about communicating with clarity and precision.