I don’t mind coming in second place, as long as I know that I’ve done my best. However, there is nothing more frustrating than coming in second place to a smartphone.
Has it ever happened to you? You’re interacting with another person when all at once, they stop interacting with you in order to respond to incessant smartphone notifications. Worse yet, without even being prompted by a notification, they decide that interacting with you would be a good time to check social media updates, look at email, or see if any new texts have arrived.
Maybe you’ve even been with someone who is close to you who would rather pull out their smartphone and totally zone out, all but forgetting that you are present and eager to interact with them.
What’s up with that?
What kind of messages are we sending to people when we use our smartphones take priority over our interactions with them? Those coming in second place to a smartphone are likely thinking:
- Do they think I’m boring?
- Would they rather be doing something else than being here with me?
- Why did they agree to get together when they’d rather be on their phone than interact with me?
- Are they looking to see what others are doing that is more exciting than what they’re doing right now?
- What’s so exciting on your phone that you can’t put it down long enough to have a real person-to-person interaction?
- This is the last time I’ll agree to get together with them in person. I’d get a better response if I just sent them a text.
I don’t know if people are intentionally trying to kill human interaction when they do these things. My guess is that they are not even aware that they are putting their smartphone in first place. Perhaps they’re just choosing the path of least resistance, because for some, human interaction is work.
Here are a couple of suggestions to ensure that we’re putting the people we’re with in first place:
- Put your smartphone in airplane mode before you meet the other person
- Keep your smartphone out of site during your interaction. Sometimes just the site of your smartphone can cause the other person to think you’re expecting a call, text, or social media update.
- Don’t be so quick to want to find the answer to every question raised. They don’t all need to be answered on the spot. Sometimes it ok if they’re not answered at all. Sometimes it’s ok just to wonder.
- If you truly would rather not spend time with the person, then don’t agree to. That would be a much kinder solution than putting them in second place.
Let’s put those we’re with in first place by giving them the gift of our undistracted attention. Not only will they appreciate it, they will be likely do the same for you.