Texting vs. Email…..You better know the difference!

Just recently, I found myself writing an email to a fellow co-worker. After I was done, I looked it over only to realize I had used "LOL" and the number two (2) instead of the word (too). Now, I’m sure we all are guilty of this whether we want to admit it or not.

Needless to say, I did not send the first draft. But, after having this happen to me I realized that this could be a growing epidemic for our generation. Over the past 10 years we have taken the English language and turned it upside down on its head. Words that use to have a certain connotation now have completely different definitions than they use to.

As a PR student I am learning everyday that consistency is an important skill to have once entering the field. Your namesake is at risk and once that is lost it's hard to get it back!

I wanted to write this in an effort to save many of you (and myself), from the embarrassment of writing an email as if it were a text message. Now don’t get me wrong, I love the ease that text messaging has brought to our everyday life. Being able to say things such as “ttyl” (Talk to you later), or “tysm” (Thank you so much), was something that was unheard of 10 years ago!

As someone who is pretty much attached at the hip and hand with my Blackberry; I find myself making these mistakes on an almost daily basis. The trick is to be more aware of what you’re saying and how you’re saying it.
So how do you avoid having this problem?

Here are some helpful tips to help those who may have issues with this or want to avoid it all together:

1. Proofread and spell check every email you send out. Even if you don’t think it may be incorrect, CHECK!
2. If you use your cell phone for both email and text messaging, try to use your computer more for the emailing. This will help you better decipher between the two in terms of language.
3. I know it may be hard but try to text message with full words and correct language! This way you will not be confused between the two.

Hopefully, these have helped you and have also made it a little bit easier to cope with! =]

Enjoy your week Beans!