This past winter, someone at the WWETT Show told me I look even younger in person than I do in my column photo. I am young. I’m only 34 years old, but I remember growing up without smartphones and immediate internet access.

I had dial-up internet access at home through high school and got my first flip phone my freshman year that featured a text count limit and a camera so blurry Sasquatch would pose in front of it without worry. Before leaving for college, I received an Apple iPod Touch that could connect to wireless internet and I couldn’t believe the technology at my fingertips.

Now, if we have a question about anything in the world, we can get an answer in a matter of seconds thanks to the computers we carry in our pockets, but there’s good and bad with that.

“Too much information can be as disconcerting as too little.” 

— Patricia Wentworth

Wentworth is spot-on. Information overload can be paralyzing. What should we believe? What is credible? What applies to us? It can get very overwhelming. 

Be cautious

There is so much good that comes from the ability to acquire knowledge so easily, but unfortunately it’s also a slippery slope. The ability to research topics so easily and also submit information to online platforms often leads to self-proclaimed experts on various topics and can cause a headache for true professionals in a trade like yourselves.

With so much information available, we need to be smarter than ever to discern what’s accurate from false claims when looking up things online. 

Social media platforms are a great example of this. They can be an invaluable asset for businesses to gain recognition, advertise and keep customers updated on what’s happening with the company. Social media is an incredible tool, but also a platform for the artificial to shine. It’s a lot easier to depict the perfect life or business on Facebook than it is to actually have one in real life. So when using social media as a research tool, keep in mind the bias that comes with it and tread lightly.

The other end is the self-made experts that know all the answers from attending 15 minutes of “YouTube University.” You need to be prepared to correct customers in a professional way when you show up to their homes and they think they have all the answers (and they don’t).

Stay objective

It’s OK to be a little bit of a skeptic when conducting online research about a topic you’re unfamiliar with until you have observed a handful of different takes. And be willing to read everything with an open mind.

It seems the internet has an uncanny ability to divide. The anonymity afforded allows people to say things with a level of cruelty they might never express in face-to-face interactions. Along with that, there is so much information available it’s incredibly easy to search for biased content to read what you want to hear. Another quote I stumbled sums up this thought well:

“The instinctual shortcut that we take when we have ‘too much information’ is to engage with it selectively, picking out the parts we like and ignoring the remainder, making allies with those who have made the same choices and enemies of the rest.” 

— Nate Silver, The Signal and the Noise

Be an example

 Here’s where you come in. 

It’s up to us as representatives of the industry to help where we can. We need to put out good content, accurate information, and help educate and teach when opportunities arise whether it’s to homeowners or others looking to gain knowledge and join the industry. It’s OK to talk about the good and the bad and to admit when you were wrong about something. Share stories of success and failure, and most importantly what you learned from those experiences. And of course, we can help you with that. We are always happy to work with you and share those lessons in PRO.

And with that, discuss ideas with other industry professionals and listen to theirs even if they differ. Everyone wants the industry to thrive, even if they have different views on how to achieve that. 

Thanks for reading this month’s issue!