One thing I am continually noticing as I work through my daily routine, is a concern about the long-term effect of living in a techno-world. I know technology is here to stay, including all future iterations. I also know that there isnt anyone who knows how it will effect the human beings on this planet.

However, I see some effects from our constant use of email, texting and other advanced forms of communication. So I wonder. What is the effect on the quality of the relationships we are creating? Some say better, some say not so hot. I say that maybe you can reach more people. I question if that is sufficient to create the kinds of œno kidding, you can count on me relationships that we all want and need.

What I just said is something we will only be able to judge further down the road. My real concern is that we are becoming sloppier by the moment in how we live our lives.

Before you get all up in arms about what I just said, lets stop and take a look. Lets start with email. Everywhere I work, I hear complaints about the volume of email that people have to deal with every day. I dont think this will get any less over time.

I think the problem is using email to communicate our feelings and emotions in and about our relationships with family, friends, colleagues, etc. People say things they would never say, in person. If we dont like what someone says we refuse to answer or make a sarcastic remark or some non sequitur that only the writer understands.

In relationships, there is nothing that cant get worked out if we are willing to talk to each other. Too easy to œdelete the other person. Too easy to communicate something that we regret later on.

Having said what I have said, perhaps a lot of the problem is that we have jumped into the Internet world without training on the protocol or most effective uses of what we have available. Maybe it is just a work in progress. Only time will tell.

Heres what really bothers me. Hiding behind our technology we have become sloppy in a variety of ways. Our communications are incomplete. We dont spell. We dont write in complete sentences. We assume the other person gets what we are saying and are upset if they dont. We text in code and abbreviations. We have little attention to detail. This leads to sloppy and incomplete work on many occasions.

Excellence in any activity is not attainable without attention to detail. As far as I am concerned there is way too much just getting through stuff. Too much attention to speed and quantity. Little attention to quality. If I intend to give 100% to anything I do, it requires me to shoot for impeccable in my performance. Maybe we never really attain 100%, but that needs to be our intention when we tee it up each day.

Last thing. My personal pet peeve with œsloppy is how we dress. We have much maligned our dress in the 70s, but Ill take bell bottoms and leather pants over what I see now. We started with dress-down Fridays to dress-down every days. How one presents himself/herself has a lot to do with what they think of themselves.

First impressions are automatic. They occur in the blink of an eye and they color a variety of subjects. Our perception of another person can be highly influenced and we may never realize how much. In my workshops confidence is a big conversation amongst athletes and coaches. Building confidence begins with how you present yourself to the world around you.

When I was a kid, my Mom used to take us kids to San Francisco for a little shopping. What I remember most was that the women I would see on the streets and in the stores were dressed up”hats, gloves and high heels. Classy is the word that comes to mind.

Learn more from Coach Todd in his latest book, œThe Art of Losing available at lulu.com.