Text messages are without a doubt a fantastic tool to keep in touch with people you are dating. You can communicate with ease with the press of a button, get to know each other, and share interesting conversations. But there is such a thing as texting too much and it is something you have to be aware of. 

If you ever allow your texting to get out of hand, it has the potential to do you a lot of harm. For starters, it will change the way the other person thinks about you in a bad way. Instead of being interesting, they will view your texting as bothersome and can begin to shy away from this sort of contact. Following are a few of the red flags that you might be texting too much: 

• There is an imbalance in your text conversations
  If you take an objective look at your conversations and notice that pretty much every message comes from you, that is a clear sign you are texting too much. Have a look at your portion of the text. If it is more than what the other side has to say, then maybe they are much less interested in such exchange. Maybe they are busy, maybe they are bored, or maybe they just cannot or do not want to keep up. Whatever the case may be, this is a clear sign that you are texting more than is warranted and that you should tone it down. The best conversations over text happen when both sides have an equal amount to share. 
  
  
• You have come to expect constant access to other people
  If you are constantly on your phone and you can reply to their text messages almost instantly, you might think it is only normal for them to do the same. However, you need to understand people have their own lives and things to take care of apart from texting back. You should give them enough leeway and check your expectations. If you are feeling impatient when the other person doesn’t reply within a few minutes but instead takes a few hours, you know it is a good idea to put the phone down. The very fact that you are on it all the time might be giving you a wrong idea about the etiquette of texting, which you could be breaking. 
  
  
• You don’t let conversations fade naturally
  Allowing conversations to die off naturally is a normal part of a text conversation. If, however, you give in to temptation and try to keep it going for as long as possible, you might be giving the other person a wrong impression. At some point in the conversation, it becomes clear that neither side has anything substantial to add. That is when it needs to fade away and continue another day. Don’t continue to text them when that moment comes. 
  
  
• You don’t text to connect, but because of boredom
  Many people check their social media or watch videos on YouTube when they are bored. And others are into texting. And while it can be healthy to pursue such a desire for human connection, you best not be doing it just because you are bored and want to kill some time. A genuine text conversation is one that both sides exchange information they want to hear about, not one that they use as a form of entertainment when they are bored. Carefully assess when you are texting and don’t do it out of boredom. 
  
  

Knowing when you are texting too much can help you on the way of finding more meaningful communication. Be on the lookout for these warning signs that you are texting too much and correct your ways. 

© Kate Mansfield Dating Coach

Josh left his ranch to his sister Jessica but the stock to his best friend Tate. The two of them have been attracted to each other for years but have tried to ignore it. They finally cannot so fight about everything.

I enjoyed these two characters. Jessica is spunky and feisty. She does not back down nor does she let setbacks keep her down. Tate gives as good as he gets. He believes he is not good enough for Jessica. Jessica does not see it that way. I liked how they both thought they knew the other. It offered some humorous moments. What I liked best was when they finally knew they had to throw in the towel for happiness and peace in their lives. Both had to grow up and did. Fun read.

This was better the second time around.

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Internal communication is evolving slowly. Even in 2019, we still see many magazines and newsletter with the same old content as our office in the Middle East, Green initiative, Meet the Boss and so on. The newsletters in most cases do not excite or appeal to them. We live in a golden age where everyone has a voice and employees definitely want to be heard, taken seriously and communicate effectively within the workplace.

The following are some trends we can expect to influence internal communication in 2019;

1. Send Less, Listen More

Listening is difficult and organizations are accustomed to traditional practices like annual performance reviews and surveys semi-annually or annually. These processes are often slow and the management generally doesn’t like immediate action. In most cases, window dressing is very common in the workplace where senior management pretend like they are listening but they are not. Due to this, employee issues are left pending for a long time which leaves them frustrated which might lead to unnecessary conflict.

2. More peer-to-peer upward communication

Most businesses focus on top-bottom communications. Sure, open door policies are a thing but even those are limited to a certain extent. Employees are not sheep. The reason they work for a company is that they are qualified to and any professional can come up with ideas or solutions to a problem. Just because they work for you does not mean they can have no input. The biggest example of this was a speech by Jack Ma in which he said that senior management should invest in their employees as they can do their jobs better than them. They are young and energetic, and they will take your business to further heights. Today, the natural inclination in companies is still top-bottom however, we are now slowly observing peer upward communication. This will ensure a better relationship as employees will have more confidence and freedom to communicate with superiors as well as share their vision. Plus, communication is now easier with all the tech businesses have at their disposal. Many companies have even integrated SMS API into their systems to communicate internally. Long questionnaires are boring and annoying, especially there is a lot you have to hold back on.

3. Rapid Action Through Measurement

We are yet to see an internal communications analytics software or program. Rapid response and feedback are what employees are craving for plus, with the way communications are at the moment, businesses cannot tell how whether the employees have received or digested the messages. They cannot tell which channel was the most efficient and if the message was correctly perceived by everyone. Sure, businesses can try to listen more but it won’t make a difference if they are not prepared for quick action. Employers are aware that their employees can easily be found active on job sites like LinkedIn where they are looking for better jobs. There is nothing wrong with this. In fact, employers should use this to eliminate their shortcomings so employees are happier.

4. More Visuals and Video Communication, Less Text

Visual communication was almost non-existent until the last 5 years or so but ever since the corporate use of Facebook and Instagram increased, improvement in operations and internal communication became evident. It was noted that when the executive body visually interacted with the employees, there was a boost in the confidence. A study also suggested that employees working in a friendly and productive environment often brag about it on social media which boosts the company image. You can also find job sites now with CEOs and managers posting videos about their company’s vision and mission on a recurring basis.

Internal communication is critical. It is absolutely vital that companies look to improve and optimize communication with employees as they contribute to the success and growth of your firm.

Cute premise - the blurb had me interested, and I was looking forward to reading this book.

It started off well enough. Darrell, early forties, is a car mechanic who recently repossessed a Prius from a customer for not paying the repair bill. Darrell doesn't need or want the Prius and hopes to sell it to recoup some of the money. What better place than Craigslist, amirite? So on suggestion of his brother Bert, Darrell puts the car up for sale.

Enter Clay, mid-thirties, who needs an inexpensive car that won't break the bank in gas consumption for his daily round-trip to work, something he's no longer willing to do in his truck.

There are a couple of almost-meets early on that set the tone for the soon-to-come romance, but then the meet-cute happens when Clay texts Darrell about the Prius and autocorrect strikes.

"Is your penis still for sale?"

Bwahahahahahaha!!!!

The attraction is sizzling when they first meet at Darrell's house to look at the car. A test drive and some light innuendo-filled banter later, a deal is struck for a Prius and a date, sealed with a hot kiss.

This is also where the book had its first WTF moment for me - I couldn't believe that two grown men would actually yank their dicks out in the driveway upon first meeting. This just rubbed me wrong - like it was perpetuating some gay man myth about promiscuity and unrelenting horniness, without any thought to who might be observing them in the driveway during their display of public indecency.

But I moved on. The sale is agreed upon, as is a date for the next evening, and then the book took a nose dive into a 2nd WTF moment.

Sure, it's all explained and what not, but I wasn't expecting Clay to be such a massive idiot. Seriously, what a stupid assumption to make. Yeah, yeah, yeah, he had his reasons with past hurt and trust issues, but come on - really? Really?

So, meet-cute, followed by a handjob in the driveway, followed by a huge misunderstanding and lack of communication, and a HFN at the end. The two MCs were nice enough, as were the supporting characters, but at supposedly 35, Clay sounded and acted at least a decade younger, and I wasn't quite buying Darrell's supposed age either.

The writing includes quite a few minute details that stretched the word count but didn't really add anything to the plot. I usually like this author's writing, so I'm a little sad that this book didn't work for me.

YMMV.


** I received a free copy of this book from its publisher. A positive review was not promised in return. **