Putting in my social media time this morning, I am once again struck with the exaggerated language used in the blogosphere. It seems that in order to be taken seriously, one must have a borderline personality disorder and the braggadocio of a Mike Fink. Consider typical language used to describe interest or expertise: obsession, junkie, passion, devious, sensational, inspirational, driven, thirst. That's just from scanning my Twitter feed. And don't get me started on the made up words.
When, if look at that actual meaning of the words we use, aren't we really talking about "liking," "interested in" and perhaps "persistant"? I mean, are you seriously obsessed with search engine optimization? My friend, you need to switch off more.
This trend of exaggeration has been a while in the making though, and seems very tied to technology and consumption. Some years ago while being interviewed at a major Interactive Agency I was told that I needed to "eat, drink, sleep, breath this stuff" in order to work there. Because this was post-workaholic me, I probably advocated life balance; I'm interested in technology and highly capable, but each day at some point I switch it off and move on to other, equally deserving facets of my life. This didn't sit well with my 20-something interviewers and I did not advance, despite being recommended by former co-workers who were shocked when the word was that I wasn't serious enough. "You're one of the most hard-core, work-focused people I know," they said. "Perhaps," I said. "but that's when I'm at work."
Trying to listen to my own drum, I resist this trend of exaggerated language. I love language, and I love words and all their quirky meanings. I don't want to yell, I do want to be accurate, and I don't want to convey that I'm so one-dimensional that I actually feel obsessed with, well, anything at the moment. Okay, premium olive oil, but I'm pretty much keeping that to my inner circle.
My name is Carol Bales and I like technology and am interested in how we use it.
There needs to be a balance between work and life.
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