I’ve been on a virtual catch-up tour over the past few weeks — connecting with people I hadn’t talked to in a bit. A few of them had a “talk shop” component, but the bulk of them were just to check-in and see how they’re doing, what’s new, how’s the fam, etc.
Everyone has little pockets of communities where they only get to see and share a thin perspective to others. Exposure to a professional certification someone just acquired, the unruly puppy they’re trying to train, the hype stats of their fledgling startup, or hot takes on the latest movie release — these are not the entirety of who someone really is. Usually. Our views are highly fragmented.
If you’re connected with the same person across a few online services, you get a wider field-of-view of who the version of themselves they’re trying to project is doing. It’s not the same as a “bubble” — I don’t think.
Getting on a 1-on-1 video chat with no other real agenda however: That’s when you get to connect on deeper level and get good, human stuff.
I mean, it’s no substitute for in-person and grabbing lunch somewhere or drinks on the back patio, but you work with what geography and schedules allow — and in my case, being restricted to my couch for 2 months while broken limbs fuse themselves back together. This is also NOT the same thing as the professional “let’s grab coffee” meeting. It’s a hang, not an agenda with beverages.
On a related note. Thanks to everyone who have been so generous with their network referrals and time, energy, and efforts for the actual “talk shop” stuff as well. Being medically benched was frustrating enough; having to rebuild all that momentum due to downtime makes it doubly so. It’s appreciated.
I’m not only a big fan of paying things forward, but also would like to keep this trend of connecting — with or without professional topics — going.
If you’re reading this and thinking “Yeah, it’s been a bit since I talked to Josh,” or “Hey, I wonder if Josh knows someone for that thing”: Reach out!
Or… you know, if any other person popped into your head reading this. Ping them!
Take a beat. Bypass communicating via algorithm. Grab some time to real-time vibe chat.
Screen: “Spider-Noir” (Amazon Prime Video). An interesting take on a Spider-Man set in a throwback detective mystery. The inspirations are more “Maltese Falcon” than “Avengers” and letting Nic Cage just riff make for an interesting watch. I’m also firmly on team “Watch it in Black and White.”
Music: “Take Me Away” (Christina Vidal Mitchell). So the wife wanted to watch “Freakier Friday” recently. I was surprised with the ear worm ability of this track — which is apparently from the first film.
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