The time is 1997, at 10:30 pm on a cold winter night in India. A family of four leaves from their house to go for a walk. It seems like an odd time to go for a walk, but neither of them seem to be in a hurry to get somewhere. The two kids are leading the way talking loudly while the parents follow them. A block away, they arrive at a little shop where the shopkeeper greets them with a familiar smile. The adults chat for a minute while kids discover something shiny to look at in the glass showcase. The shopkeeper dials a number on the keypad, hands over the receiver to the parents and makes himself scarce.
This is not the plot of a thriller movie, but the memory of me going with my family to make long distance calls. This beautiful memory, around the simple task of making a long-distance call is a shared memory for my family. With minor details different from our differing perspectives, the common factor is the quality time we had together before and after the call. The act of careful selection process of who to call in the set time and budget, if there was anything specific to talk about, and chatting with the shopkeeper (who for sure knew a lot about everyone in the neighborhood), involved the voices and engagement from all 4 of us.
Fast forward to today, when Happy Birthdays can be effortlessly wished over a text. Our calendars remind us who to wish and Gmail gives us the ability to schedule send a ‘warm wish’. The process is quicker, super-efficient and we are always connected. But who are we connected to? Are we really connected as people, or connected only by the internet?
Internet and smart phones have given us the ability to communicate with our loved ones, or the world, more easily. But has this 24*7 connection enabled us to talk more? or to strengthen our relationships? or even build meaningful experiences around that communication? With this ease of access and effortlessness, the mindfulness and the depth of conversations seem to have shrunken. The idea of companionship has drastically changed too. The need to meet and spend time doing nothing is replaced by a quick checking in phone call. Virtual assistants could also be the new companions, or in one particular case of Akihiko Kondo even a life partner. (Back story: the 35 year old Akhihiko Kondo married an anime hologram of the cyber celebrity: Hatsune Miku, in a traditional wedding ceremony).
Further, technology is evolving at a blistering pace. We might be only a decade or two away from telepathy, to share our thoughts over a network. In this not so distant future, we might experience a disconnect from much human sensory channels or physical interactions. From collective memories and shared experiences two decades ago, to being about two decades away from a collective consciousness, we stand at the cusp of a seminal shift. Is it really the efficient communication we need or everything that communication entails: from figuring what to say, how to say, or sometimes not even say anything at all, to fights, disagreements, or a conversation with physical interaction. The on-demand accessibility have also impacted the collective experiences and memories. The room for building experiences around the mere act of communication is shrinking. This tension between easy access to technology and enabling relationships through could be an opportunity.
As a designer, we have the ability to transform these insights into foresights. Retaining the idea of mindful interactions, I wonder if it’s possible to re-imagine all communication tools just as a framework, thereby allowing people to tailor make their experiences. What would Whatsapp, WeChat, imessage, Facebook chat or Skype be like if they were just loose tool kits and could be customized by families together to communicate with each other in the ways they’d like? What would that personalized experience mean beyond setting up a specific profile picture to identify ourselves as a family? Could we still walk together and still build an experience around making a phone call? Could we find a balance between an efficient means of communication and an effective means of communication?
I don’t have an answer yet, but as a designer I believe I’ve the tools, the awareness and willingness to try to find one.
