The Signal

Anything can be a signal. A flare, a glare or a stare. Literally any action, emotion or reaction can serve the purpose of a signal. Signals exist in all forms around us. They can be actions, they can cause actions, and as we speak, they are “in action.”

In a war, a flare may be important enough to decide the victorious party. That is, if it means something! A signal needs to carry meaning. The person it is meant for must know what the signal conveys. Otherwise it is pointless. In Karachi, a flare means some kids are fooling around with fireworks. In a war, it may mean the enemy is about to attack, and the meaning that the action carries makes all the difference to its significance.

Imagine sitting in a restaurant with a group of people. You talk, you joke, you laugh, you say something stupid!

A kick from under the table! That’s your friend sending you a signal that you were not supposed to say that. You understand and shut up, trying to smile while you are under the more painful effects of the signal. In other situations, a kick may have meant to hurt. A hostile signal! However, it’s the context of the action which makes it the kind of signal it is.

Sarcasm is a well known signal. It’s how we say something and mean something else. It’s a great skill to be able to imply something without saying it. Sometimes people just do not want to hear some words, but they are in touch with the real situation. That is when we need people who can get their point across while following social rules. Tactfulness is something that can make a huge difference to your likeability and effectiveness. Telling someone “You just need some gym” can yield an entirely different reaction than by saying “your unfit Dudley” instead. This is because these two lines may get the same point across but the signals which emanate from them are entirely different. The former is a signal of hope and faith, while the latter is condescending and haughty.

As human beings, reading signals is a really important trait. Whoever is better at reading and identifying signals can be successful at what they do. That is exactly what talent is. A talented stock broker can read subtle signals in the market and predict future trends accurately. Lionel Messi always knows where to turn and take the ball because he can masterfully judge what the defenders will do.

All chemical and electric processes depend on signals. There are several gauges at each point in a process expressing signals such as pressures, temperatures, voltages, currents. These are vital since they serve as our translators with the natural phenomenon we are trying to employ. They are imperative for us to be able to understand the process and how to get what we desire.

Therefore, it is correct to say that signals are the basis of how everything works in this universe. To do well in our daily lives, we must be polite, hard working, determined. Yet, it is equally important to improve our art of detecting signals and knowing what they mean in different contexts so that we can select the correct response. Some signals are more subtle than others. However, they are all there. Just like a blind person cannot see a red light, we are blind in a similar manner to some kinds of signals.

That is why it is advisable to receive an education but also to increase your knowledge daily. An illiterate citizen may not be able to understand what signal a new national budget may convey and its effect on his future. Similarly, I may be an engineer but I am an illiterate to the arts and social sciences. Unless someone knows Latin, or has read Dan Brown’s Digital Fortress, they will not understand what I mean if I end a letter addressed to them with the words “without wax”. In Latin the words for “without wax” are “sin cere” and in ancient times, statues were fixed with wax if there were any mistakes. A flawless statue needed no such repairs and was therefore called sin-cere. That is the how the word sincere was born. But the point is that you wouldn’t know this unless you read it here or somewhere else. Hence, increasing knowledge is vital to improve signal-reading.

Hopefully this article may have produced a signal which induces a positive change in the reader.