This entry was originally a writing assignment for the company I worked for at the time. We were asked to contribute to the company blog.
Everyone needs an outlet to express themselves; to emancipate our ideas, emotions, and desires. How we do this and the means by which it is interpreted will inevitably define us.
The world as we knew it has changed. Technology has infiltrated our lives and brought with it a new avenue of communication. With the advent of social media and networking websites our world has become much larger and a lot less private. Before, conversations at a party, by the office water cooler, or even at the dinner table would not travel very far. Today, in a world of video cameras, internet, and texting with our phones, words and ideas traveling at the speed of light. A casual conversation one moment, could minutes later show up as posts, and before you realize it, it has been read by someone across the world.
How we are perceived simply comes down to what we say. When we gripe about Mondays, what does that tell management about our role as an employee? What if the intern announces on Twitter that they “felt totally useless”? And what if their boss reads it? What we say and do, can easily run the risk of insulting or alienating a person, or worse, many people. With social media, we can all publish public content. A miscommunication today can quickly leave a bad impression and break down relationships among a much larger group.
Speak with sincerity and clarity. Always understand that no matter how hard you try, that someone, somehow, will misinterpret you. So, leave your mark knowing it is now forever part of your online persona.
I was also asked to explain the imagery I created for it, this is what I wrote:
The silhouette is of someone who is connected to technology. The motion blur illustrates how fast we are changing, how what we say is never a completely accurate picture of who we truly are, and how quickly we can transfer a digital idea of ourselves across the globe. The repeating outlines of the person illustrates who we were in the past, what we are becoming, and how that is and never will be exactly who we are right now. It also can be construed as a visual representation of us broadcasting ourselves to the world. The earth below shows that all of this is happening on a global scale.