The Train of Life Waits for Nobody

Across the Fence #329

What does the future hold for the way we communicate with each other? Is there anyone out there who doesn’t think that everything is changing? Can you hear me? Can you see me?

The way we communicate with each other has changed dramatically during my lifetime. Crank phones, party lines, rotary phones, and push button phones, have either disappeared or are going the way of the telegraph and smoke signals.

We’re becoming a very mobile, video-based society. Cell phones, text messaging, Facebook, Skype, Twitter, and numerous other applications are the way young people communicate today. The younger generation prefers text messaging over voice communication. People are no longer tied to their home or office to send and receive messages. They take their communication devices with them wherever they go.

As I write this column, I’m on an airplane headed back home from Dallas, Texas. I’ve spent the past week there at the National Telecommunications Cooperative Association (NTCA) Conference and Expo. I have my cell phone and my computer within reach. Others traveling with me, have their iPhones, Droids, and iPads. On these devices we can check our messages, e-mails, send messages, and continue to conduct business, even while flying from Dallas to Minneapolis.

In many ways this is a double-edged sword. It’s handy and a great way to stay in touch and up to date, but on the other hand, it’s very hard to get totally away from work.

At the conference we learned how much and how rapidly the world of communications is changing. It’s both exciting and scary. People will need to jump on board and embrace the changes or be left behind. I know all the changes are very scary for many people, but there’s no turning back the clock to what we call those simpler times that many of us remember.

I can’t even imagine the changes that will take place in the next few years. Listen to these quotes regarding telephones, radios, and computers.

“Well-informed people know it’s impossible to transmit their voices over wires, and even if it were possible, the thing would not have practical value.” – Editorial in the Boston Post, 1865.

“I think there is a world market for maybe five computers.” – Thomas Watson, Chairman of IBM, 1943.

“There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home.” – Ken Olson, President, Chairman, and Founder of Digital Equipment Corporation, 1977.

It’s hard to believe, that these people in leadership positions didn’t see any market for these technological inventions. Look how far computers have come since that statement in 1977—only 34 years ago. Besides everything else computers can do, they’re now capable of hearing and speaking too. With Skype you can now communicate with people all over the world and see each other as you talk. Can you hear me? Can you see me? Yes I can, loud and clear.

The technology curve has become so steep and fast that it’s hard to imagine the changes we’ll see in just the next five years. During the conference, we heard about some of the changes coming that boggle my mind. Have you heard about flexible video screens? Google it!

We also learned that you either change with the times, or you will cease to exist. I’ve seen that time and again since I graduated with a commercial art degree a lifetime ago. Everything has changed. As the business of advertising kept changing, I had two choices, either accept the changes and climb aboard, or live in the past and let the train of changing technology go on without me. With each change, I decided to hang on for dear life and keep riding. It hasn’t been easy. The computer age was another two-edged sword. I learned to do graphic arts on a computer while flying by the seat of my pants—a major uff da. It was either learn it or get out of the business.

I’m reminded of a friend who was badly wounded in Vietnam. He spent a couple years in hospitals recuperating. At one time he was so weak he couldn’t lift a five-pound weight. He’d given up and wanted to die. One day an old army nurse was trying to get him to do his therapy. He just lay in his hospital bed and wouldn’t cooperate. The nurse finally stepped back, gave his bed a swift kick and yelled at him, “The train of life waits for nobody. If you want to just lie there and die, go ahead! I’ve got a lot of people on this ward who want to live and they need my help.” She turned on her heels and left him lying there. That moment was the turning point for him. He decided he wanted to get back on the train of life. He’d show her. He learned to adapt and wasn’t left behind.

When you have trouble mastering that remote for your TV, just think of all the changes you’ve seen in your life and how you’ve adapted. There’s always hope, and change can be exciting. We can have fun remembering and talking about the past, but we need to live in the present, and look to the future. It’s going to be an exciting ride!