Communication until not so long ago was generally posting letters or phone calls, as opposed to today’s online exchange of correspondence. That being said, post office services, express delivery, and telegram services are still used.
In the nineteen eighties facsimile machines became the rage for companies to liaise worldwide, especially in the case of document transmission which was immediate. Posting documents took time, and there was a small risk of never arriving. Letter writing was an alternative used for communication between family members, general correspondence, or romance for those living abroad for the simple reason that telephone calls were very expensive.
Nowadays most people speak by phone, or by video conference which clearly are immediate and more convenient. We often take for granted how easy it is to pick up our mobile devices to either call directly, or if it’s over long distance then economize by using Skype, or WhatsApp which are free if both sides have them installed.
Online meetings such as Google Meet, Microsoft Team, or Zoom, or one of the many other options available are commonplace, and of course, writing understandable messages are an important English development tool to negotiate business, agreements, policies, and binding contracts.
As an aspiring young businessman in the seventies and eighties we never had today’s smartphones which can create pdfs by taking snapshots of printed documents, or whatever it is that needs to be sent. In fact, life was very different and, in many ways, more difficult. Facsimile machines used to cost £3,000.00 in the early days, so it wasn’t a tool for communication that the average person would purchase.
Truth is life seemed much easier then from the standpoint at the time. Nevertheless, today’s modern gadgets certainly make savvy users benefit in terms of speed and convenience. The age has come; however, it is just as competitive as ever before while speed has quickened the pace.
Writing letters with overseas correspondence used to make sense as a viable option. Today writing letters in English is vitally important and essential in today’s business world to not only get your point across, but to negotiate winning tactics.
Practice writing skills whenever the opportunity arises and then show it to your English teacher. Get his or her support to improve your English language when possible!
Have a terrific day!
Prof. Carl Boniface
Vocabulary builder:
Rage (n) = can mean fury, anger, wrath, but in the text it is more phrenzy, frenzy, craze, (ant) calmness
Liaise (n) = communicate, link, bridge, mediate, coordinate, network, interact, act as a go-between, get together with
Binding (adj) = compulsory, obligatory, required, requisite, necessary, mandatory, (ant) voluntary. Also, to bind (v) is to tie, fasten
Nevertheless (adv) = Yet, but, however, nonetheless, still, though, on the other hand, all the same, even
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