Top tips: Why the most underrated tech skill today Is interpretation
Top Tips is a weekly column where we highlight what’s trending in the tech world today and list ways to explore these trends. This week, we’re looking at why interpretation matters when messages, meetings, and notifications never seem to stop.
We live in a world where messages travel faster than meaning. Emails are sent in seconds, chats stack up by the hour, and meetings are recorded, transcribed, and summarized before we’ve had time to process what was actually said. We communicate more than ever, yet understanding feels less common. That’s because the real challenge of modern work isn’t receiving more information, it’s interpreting it better.
1. Look beyond the words on the screen
Digital communication strips away facial expressions, pauses, and tone, leaving us with words that can feel blunt or ambiguous. A short message might sound cold when it was simply sent between meetings. A delayed reply might signal thoughtfulness, not disinterest.
Interpreting well means asking a second question in your head before reacting: What is the sender trying to achieve? Instead of taking messages at face value, look at timing, context, and past patterns.
2. Use AI as context, not conclusions
AI tools are great at shortening conversations, but in the process, subtlety often slips through the cracks. A meeting summary can tell you what was discussed, but not how strongly people felt about it, where hesitation existed, or which points sparked tension. AI can show you the outline, but understanding still comes from filling in the gaps yourself. If something feels unclear or too neat, revisit the original discussion. Interpretation lives in the details that don’t always survive automation.
3. Context matters more in remote work
Remote work didn’t ruin communication, it simply revealed how much we used to rely on unspoken cues. It's easy for assumptions to slip in without quick desk-side chats or body language to lean on. Interpretation gets easier when we’re generous with context. A little clarity around expectations, timelines, or intent can save a lot of back-and-forth. It’s the difference between sending a fragment of an idea and showing the full picture.
4. When tone gets lost online
Tone has become surprisingly delicate online. A message that felt perfectly neutral when typed can land very differently on the other end. Small things like punctuation, emojis, or even line breaks now shape how a message is felt, not just read. Navigating this well often comes down to generosity, giving people the benefit of the doubt and pausing before reacting. Sometimes, a little extra context or warmth is all it takes to keep a conversation on track.
5. Choose tools that clarify, not amplify
More tools don’t always lead to better communication. Sometimes, they do the opposite, layering noise over conversations that were already hard to follow. The tools that actually help are the quieter ones, the ones that surface decisions, reduce repetition, and make it easier to return to what mattered later. When information is easier to hold onto, understanding has room to grow.
Why interpretation matters now more than ever
Technology has made it easier than ever to exchange information, but understanding hasn’t kept the same pace. Interpretation is the quiet work that turns conversations into clarity and messages into shared direction. As the volume of communication continues to grow, knowing what truly matters becomes less about hearing more and more about understanding better.