Imagine you are making an important presentation at your company. Right after the first slide, your boss grabs her phone. Then, after a couple of minutes, a colleague glances at his watch. Throughout the session, two people keep staring at their computer. You read the situation and get nervous. The meeting is getting out of your hands…
Having repertoire is the fundamental tool for any sound designer: the more, the better. That's why I’m always experimenting with new gadgets. Besides being helpful, they give me insights on how people are meeting their needs with new technologies.
For instance, I am a note taker. I rely on them to help me during meetings or to remind me of its main topics after a while. I found out they bring back my perspective from when I got in touch with a subject or person. I see it as my time-traveling machine and, since I don't qualify as someone that has a great memory, note-taking is what keeps me sharp. Back in the days, I used to love taking notes on Moleskines. I would carry those little notebooks everywhere and still keep many of them at home. In 2008, during a trip to Italy, I lost the best one I’ve ever had. It contained thoughts and observations from my first four months of living in Barcelona. I never really recovered from having lost it. There should be another way of registering my notes, I thought. But at that time, digital note-taking wasn’t much of an option. Smartphones were a novelty, there were no tablets and notebooks were heavy to carry.
Fast-forward to today. Many people still take notes using pen and paper, even though they have smartphones. Why? My explanation is it because pen and paper are socially accepted. I'll give you that using your phone is not the best tool to take notes. But more than this, If you grab your phone to take notes in a meeting, people think you are doing anything but paying attention. On the other hand, a notebook screen creates a barrier between you and other participants. So, the only gadget you can comfortably use in a meeting is a tablet with a pen. Since it simulates the real note-taking process, people won’t assume you’re not interested in what they have to say. It is socially ok to do it.
Want another example? Smartwatches. I’ve been wearing one for about a year now. They are great with notifications, sparing you many times the need to take your phone from your pocket. The problem? When you look at your watch, people think you are bored or late to get somewhere. It has happened to me many times. I get a notification and have a quick look at my watch. Then I can see the concerned expression on other people’s faces when in a meeting, wondering if I’m eager to leave.
So, what’s the point?
Back at your meeting, it might be that your boss is taking notes on how excellent your presentation is; your colleague declined a call using his smartwatch since he was so interested in what you had to say; people in notebooks are sharing your insights with people that couldn’t be at the meeting. Your initial impression was nothing but a misreading of social conventions. But it ruined the presentation for you.
Think about Google Glass. The gadget was fantastic, but never got socially accepted. People just don’t like having a camera pointed at their faces all the time. When Google relaunch it, they will also have to overcome this social barrier before it gets adopted by the masses. It might take a while before people accept having a camera pointed at their face 100% of the time. The trade-off must be evident to owners and whoever is around them. And then people will probably get used to it. Even when it seems we have amazing tools that might help us, there are social conventions that might get in our way.
In times of constant changes and infinite technological possibilities, being aware of how any new object affects the way people interact with each other is as important as thinking about how it will improve the direct beneficiary’s life. When designing a new solution, it’s important to assess the social factor regarding people around the solution. As a designer, you shouldn’t blindly fall in love with a technological possibility. Consider those who will use it but also the ones who will be around it as well. It might be the tiny detail that turns a flop into a successful launch.
