Namaste, Welcome to SAM-VAD (Together In Conversation), where we try to draw your attention to things that matter and the importance of our attention, why is that? Because ‘let us remember this again, ‘What we give our Attention to matters.’ Our life’s experience would ultimately amount to whatever we had paid attention to. Attention: is important and most of the times we are indifferent to it. It is as fundamental as food; and we go blundering about, seeking ways to assuage the craving, instead of learning how to provide ourselves with what we need, sensibly and calmly. Once our attention is drawn to the mechanism of why and what we give attention to, it is as if a veil has been stripped off and we become freer in our action and choices. And that is our endavour. This week again I bring to your attention an excerpt which we have titled – Technology and Effective Communication from the book titled ‘Willful Blindness’ – Why we Ignore the Obvious at Our Peril by Margaret Heffernan. This book tries to understand, why after every major accident and blunder, do we look back and say how could we have been so blind? Why do some people see what others don’t? And how can we change? Drawing on studies by psychologists and neuroscientists, and interviews with business leaders, whistleblowers, and white-collar criminals, businesswoman and writer Margaret Heffernan examines the phenomenon of willful blindness, exploring the reasons that individuals and groups are blind to impending personal tragedies, corporate collapses, engineering failures even crimes against humanity. Technology and Effective Communication Conference calls, with teams of executives huddled around speaker-phones, fail to convey personality, mood, and nuance. You may start to develop rapport with the person who speaks most—or take an instant dislike to him or her. But you’ll never know why. Nor will you perceive the silent critic scowling a thousand miles away. Videoconferencing distracts all its participants who spend too much time worrying about their hair and whether they’re looking fat, uncomfortable at seeing themselves on screen. The nervous small talk about weather—it’s snowing there? It’s hot and sunny here —betrays anxiety about the vast differences that the technology attempts to mask. Physical distance isn’t easily bridged, no matter how refined the technology. Instead, we delude ourselves that because so many words are exchanged—e-mail, notes, and reports somehow a great deal of communication must have taken place. But that requires, in the first instance, that the words be read, that they be understood, and that the recipient know enough to read with discernment and empathy. Excerpt from ‘Willful Blindness’ by Margaret Heffernan I am sure that you will enjoy reading this book; you can buy your copy from the following link: https://www.mheffernan.com/book-wilfulblindness.php Enjoy reading it with your family, friends and near and dear one’s. Namaste! a class="a2a_button_email" href="...