#IRL Means In Real Life

Beyonce funny photo

Recently I had a couple of experiences that reminded me of the folly of thinking we have a great social life if we have a bunch of Facebook, Twitter, and other online friends. Yes, “virtual friends” can be meaningful, but nothing trumps meeting and knowing people IRL, aka in real life. In Real Life means face to face, sitting near one another, interacting in real time, and otherwise being a human being. Yes, it’s alien to many of us – especially our kids – but it brings rewards that can’t be calculated by Klout or the number of “likes” or so-called “followers” you might have.

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The Joy of Meeting People IRL – In Real Life

Meeting a Traffic Guard at Ground Zero

Meeting people in real life, in person, is cool. I write and speak a great about technology and social interaction. It’s my belief that modern technology offers wondrous things, but as with just about everything, there is a down side.  That “down side” is that you can be lulled to believe that you can do everything you need to do from the comfort of your computer.  Yes, you can do much more than at any time in human history, but the value of direct people contact can not be replaced by any new tech device, app, software, or web site.

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