The Downward Spiral of Empathetic Conversations
from my iPhone 12 photo collections
I was browsing Twitter recently and I came across people's complaints on a Twitter post from a popular Internet brand in Nigeria. Most people complained about the price increase and how difficult it was to afford.
I felt bad; if I were the owner of the company, seeing those responses would make me feel bad and decide to lower the price slightly.
The thing that baffled me the most was the social media handlers of this company.
They were most likely using AI-generated or automated conversations; instead of responding to these people individually, attempting to relate to their plight, responding compassionately, and so on, but they continued to respond with automated responses.
Talk Is Not Cheap afterall
The art of meaningful conversation is gradually becoming extinct. It occurs not only in business settings, but also in everyday situations.
Unless it is two lovers who are drunk in love, most conversations are meant to be formal, to follow a script, and sometimes people do their best to stay in character.
Since I lost my only sibling, it is been difficult for me to pick up the phone and talk to random people, and I am tired of the soulless methodology used in some types of conversations. It is almost possible to predict what they will say, how they will say it, and why.
Stranger Things Happens In Phone Conversations
Today I received a call from an unfamiliar number. So I picked up the phone and waited for the person to speak and possibly introduce themselves, and when they didn't, I decided to hang up because I did not have the energy.
Apparently this person knows my name, but based on how they spoke, I am confident I have never seen or known them.
However, I was unwilling to engage in fruitless conversations, and before I hung up, I could hear the person on the other end saying some unpleasant things about me.
It was exactly what I needed to never answer that phone call from this person again.
100% Predictability
I mean, if I had engaged in that conversation, I could almost hear them saying things like "how are you" and I am expected to say fine, then they will ask you if you know who was talking, and if you can not guess, they will probably call something you would not like, then they will go ahead and say "oh I heard about your brother's death, never mind, you will be fine"
then they will go ahead and talk about what they want, or why they were calling, and since this was the main conversation it might last for a while.
Throughout the call, you are expected to smile, laugh, and answer strange questions while remaining in character until the end of the call.
Apparently, I was not prepared for cosmetics conversations.
It's just soulless
It is exhausting to constantly answer the "how are you?" question, and if I was truly okay, I would probably say "I am fine" but since I am usually not, I would rather avoid the conversation entirely.
Nowadays, doctors and therapists are probably the only people who truly know us. They know your medical history, and they are probably the only ones with whom you can have realistic conversations, cry in front of them, or express your fears.
Of course, you can do this with God in prayer, but most realistic conversations among people are shallow and lack depth.
Stay Insane Sane Always
We are mostly in character, perfectly suited to whatever environment we find ourselves in. It is just like going to the bank to apply for a loan.
I meant you can not be moody in front of the bank manager. You must smile so that they do not suspect you of being depressed or suicidal, and you must say what they want you to hear in order for them to give you the money.
Coming out of character is what makes people weird, different, or mentally ill. When a person is crying in front of a crowd of a few hundred people, they will undoubtedly be perceived as strange and out of place.
Unfortunately, life happens, and we begin to question the essence of everything, such as why we study conversations to pass job interviews, read from books at funerals, and recite Facebook quotes to console someone in pain.
Why we believe that social media care is the best type of care, and how we can say things without any of them really hitting home with us.
Personally, I am tired of being in character, so I avoid the conversations. This may send an unpleasant silent message, but there is never a time when being realistic is enjoyable.
Interested in some more of my works
Is it Easy To Make Money?
Nigeria: A Unique Business Market & Industry
Virtual Bank Apps In Nigeria: An Experience Of Gamification
How To Find The Next "BIG" Meme Coin
Personal Finance: Achieving Intentional "Saving" Goals
Playing The Survival Game: Human Nature In Introspection
"Un-PAYING" The Debt You Owe
Interested in some more of my works
Is it Easy To Make Money?
Nigeria: A Unique Business Market & Industry
Virtual Bank Apps In Nigeria: An Experience Of Gamification
How To Find The Next "BIG" Meme Coin
Personal Finance: Achieving Intentional "Saving" Goals
Playing The Survival Game: Human Nature In Introspection
"Un-PAYING" The Debt You Owe
Ok this was crazy, but got a point to think about.
The Telecom giant employing automated responses to reply customers just shows they don't care about them. Indeed empathic conversations are in a downward spiral these days especially with the rise of AI tech. Making meaningful conversations is becoming a lot art in our society and this will have a negative impact on people's relationships. Because without meaningful conversations no relationship can thrive.
I think these guys are all like that. From MTN to Airtel and the rest. I mean, why use customer care who will use automated responses when you can easily pay AI to do the job lol.
This really resonates with me. The way conversations have become so scripted and impersonal, especially on social media, makes genuine connection feel almost impossible. Have a great weekend!
Thank you. I thought it was something that was unique to me, but then I realize it's something that relatively happens in most works of life. Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend too.
Some days I feel like the sanity already "flew the coop"... I don't socialize much by phone either, no real point, most everyone is busy anyway. Empathy is a dying trait in busy society, and it's something you should never lose. Sooner or later you get sick, old, and die, it's good to remind ourselves we are mortal and others can use our help and empathy!
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Indeed, everyone is busy anyway. I use to be a social animal, 5 to 6 years ago. Maybe if was how life was for me. I think when it comes to empathy, one needs to have experienced life in many ways to be empathetic. I think many people are ignorant of the issues of life and sometimes i feel we need deeper life experiences to have traits as compassion and empathy.
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I think that is true for a lot of businesses now. I think they just use a standard response given by the company or some AI bot to reply with. I think it causes less issues for them.
Indeed. I wonder why this is so and honestly it truly doesn't make sense to me. Business should have a soulful form of interaction with their customers
Bro, I feel you. This is so deep and true and no one's talking about it.
People that don't know me so well think I'm moody, or even an asshole. No, it's just that I hate useless speech. I don't open my mouth to say useless things. So I am an introvert, anti-social person? Not really, but nobody seems to understand this. They're too busy to bring air into their mouths...
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STOPI did this: about 4 years ago I stopped picking up the phone if the number is not in the contact list - I don't care who is calling, if the contact is not displayed, it means I don't know this person - accordingly I have nothing to talk to him about
Every stupid call is a waste of time, if you add up this time, it can be a whole year.
Ohh, I thought so too. For me, if it's not business transaction or maybe calls that are necessarily important, I actually don't see the need for long conversations especially with people I don't know much about them. I'm always just tired of them all
The worst part about those people complaining about the prize of the company is that no matter the price range they will still end up buying, people complain about how hard the economy is and how little they see to eat yet restaurant and fastfood is crowded throughout the week where do they get the money from? Hosnestly we the masses are the cause of our problems.
There's really nothing to do. There are no options. MTN is the only viable option and people need to run their business, so they need that option to run their businesses, unfortunately no options
Ohh so its MTN no wonder i saw them increase a 600 2 days plan worth 2.5gb to 900 for the same duration and data, i was so pissed off. Its too bad MTN is the shapest network though just like you said