Finding the correct length for an instant message is not always easy.  It all depends on how much you have to say.  The problem is when you have a lot to say you may be tempted to blurt.  The IM version of blurting is a long paragraph of speech.  So how [...]

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Instant messenging can be a great way to open up a dialogue. Some people however, treat it like their personal PA system.
Periodically they take off their away message (or sign in) and send out a few brief messages like these:
“Mark, if you want to hang out tonight call me.”
“Send me your status report [...]

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Video chat can be a great tool for communications.  There are also a few times when it can be a bad idea.  Here are some of those times.

When you are sick, or have not properly groomed.
When you are upset.  Your face could end up betraying more then [...]

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Using a video chat is a lot like going on TV.  If you want to look good you may have to take a few extra steps:

Avoid glossy things.  This includes high gloss lipstick, glittery items and polarized sunglasses.
Balance the proportions on the top half of your body.  [...]

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The land of IM is where abbreviated typing now known erroneously as text speak, began.  A lot of the time, this is a great time saver, or finger saver as the case may be.
A problem arises when people try to make it up as they go along.  Who knows what WAFH means?

Wearing [...]

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We tend to take our privacy online for granted.  We assume that when we enter into a private chat on AIM (or any public IM service) that the information will stay where we it.  That can be a false assumption.  There are a few ways the conversation can become public:

A loose [...]

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Adding friends to your business instant messenger is a little different then it is with your personal messenger.  When you are dealing with your business messenger there are some questions you should ask yourself before you add on a new contact.

Is my relationship with this person professional?
Will we talk [...]

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There is little doubt that we live in a culture of instant gratification.  We all want things, and we want them now.  Going to the video store is lengthy, but downloading on iTunes can take a fraction of that time (and, as a bonus, you can do something else during that [...]

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