By Eline Kullock
As I was growing up, the act of flirtation took place “live.” For the most part, this is not something Generation Y can really relate to. We got to see magic lighting up the other’s glance, the sparkling eyes, and the instant “click” that seemed to produce such intense passions. Live, we witnessed shaky, sweaty, palms, and we knew that romantic conquest was near.
Today, the language of seduction and romantic conquests has changed. Everything happens through Texts, Twitter, and Facebook. These new ways of expressing emotion leave body language behind, as it rests on a secondary plane. Today, it’s rare for people to even have the opportunity to express themselves in face-to-face interactions.
The Anthropologist Edward Hall was the first to speak of the “Silent Language.” Hall refers to body language as facial expressions, and writes about how the body speaks, using its hands, posture, and a series of codes that convey what words often cannot.
In Brazilian culture especially, we joke that we can’t speak without our hands. We speak through a sort of dance, walking, singing, gesturing, glancing, and smiling. We let our bodies do much of the talking. As we say one thing, we know that our bodies often express something else, as body and speech don’t always match.
With this new culture, in which young people swap texts all day, talking through MSN, Facebook, and Twitter, I wonder what communication will be like in the future? What will happen as our language becomes more and more textual, losing its colorful images? This question was addressed in a really interesting article in “The Wall Street Journal”
Body language is something we do unconsciously. I wonder, how will emotion be expressed solely through text? Leaders for example, rely greatly on emotion, and charisma, to engage their team. Dr. Laurent Lapierre, a Canadian Professor, lectured about the way in which an orchestra conductor knows he’s ready, once he can direct without his hands, relying on the emotions conveyed through his facial expressions.
How will Generation Y express their emotions in texts often limited by 140 characters? How will they express their energy, creativity, sense of urgency, anxiety, and happiness? How is it possible to transmit all this without physical presence?
I also wonder about how leadership from afar works. How will all these new ways of communicating affect the corporate world?
