Technology can help us in unexpected ways. Since acquiring an iPhone equipped with Siri, Apple’s computerized assistant, I’ve learned a lot about using the tool. Here are four of the most important points:
Communication takes place in multiple forms, including written, non-verbal and audible. But when we’re on the phone, only the audible portion matters. Therefore, the words we choose to say need to be clearly spoken or they could be misinterpreted.
If a highly sophisticated computer, designed to listen to all kinds of dialects and enunciation, cannot properly interpret what you are saying, how or why would you think that a person on the other end of a phone conversation would have any more success?
goes Ralph on his morning run.
investment portfolio is growing.
going to be fine.
2. It will help you learn to use the proper form of words.
Voice recognition software usually does a good job of understanding the syntax of a sentence and therefore uses the proper form of homonyms. As someone who cares about the written word, I cannot over emphasize how frustrated I get when people use the improper form of a homonym (words that sound the same but have different meanings.)
3. It will save you time.
Most of us who type regularly as a part of our lives, can type between 30 and 60 words a minute. But for many, typing can rarely keep up with the flow of thoughts, especially in a busy, multitasking, work environment. Often, I will start typing a paragraph but get interrupted before completing it and have a difficult time recovering the initial idea. Using voice recognition software alleviates these interruptions by allowing me to finish speaking the whole idea.
4. It can help you multitask.
You can use your voice while the rest of your body is not available. Very frequently I use Siri (the iPhone version of voice recognition software) to send and receive text messages with my family, while I am driving or running. (Please be advised financial professionals at LPL Financial are not allowed to use text messaging to conduct business.)
The first draft of this blog post was created during my morning run. I wear earbuds attached to my iPhone 4s, and for dictating long memos, I prefer to use a recording app from Rode Microphones, but the native voice memo app works fine. Then, I play the recording back into my iPad’s microphone with the word-processing application Pages open to receive the dictation.
Voice recognition software is not perfect, but it has come a very long way from the days just a few years ago when you had to spend hours training your computer software to understand your dialect. It’s included free with Apple computers and mobile products. It’s also available for most other mobile and desktop computing devices.
Let me know if you have other great ideas for putting voice recognition to work.
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Email: Ralph.Bender@lpl.com
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