What is wrong with you?’

“When are you coming to visit us?”

‘Are you on vacation? Take lots of pictures!’

These are just some of the messages I’ve received over the past few weeks from generations of friends and family around the world.

It seems so easy to stay connected these days – and I know my life would be so different without WhatsApp.

Being connected is a fundamental part of my heritage and lifestyle. I am a Pakistani British woman and the eldest child in the family. In a family like mine, this often means I am responsible for encouraging regular meetings and maintaining family relationships.

I’ve always loved being close to my extended family – but now I don’t have to wait for a Sunday gathering to find out what’s going on in someone else’s life – aunts, uncles, cousins ​​and friends from all over worldwide. around the world, they drink chai together through video calls and send pictures of their daily lives to strengthen our bond and understanding of each other’s lives.

It may sound obvious, but I think in the modern world we take this simple way of communicating for granted.

Life is different today, not only in my parents’ generation, but even in my single childhood.

When I first started out in the business world, WhatsApp became my little green book of connections (Photo: Sonya Barlow)

In my teenage years, we only needed to stay connected with the OG – MSN Messenger.

In the mid-2000s, it was hard to keep in touch with family and friends on dial-up connections and everyone sharing the same computer.

After MSN Messenger, my main method of contact was Blackberry’s BBM, but not everyone had the phone.

And so I started using WhatsApp in 2010.

While studying abroad in Italy, I kept in touch with my family and asked for recipes to take or sent pictures of places I visited.

And that continues to this day where I use WhatsApp not only to keep in touch but also as a secret weapon to run my own business.

As I write this I am using WhatsApp to keep up to date with my grandparents who are currently traveling. my cousin as she welcomes her new baby into the world, and my global teammates as we plan how to scale our business over the next year.

WhatsApp has helped me maintain many relationships and it doesn’t cost me a penny.

I always knew I wanted to run my own business, but I never imagined I could start one in the palm of my hand and instantly develop, share, and get feedback on my latest ideas.

When I first started out in the business world, WhatsApp became my little green book of connections and the one thing that made me feel like I had imposter syndrome, something that became more important with the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

During that time I lost my job, my security and my self-esteem.

The app has helped me find peace in those moments of devastation during the pandemic (Photo: Sonya Barlow)

The pandemic has only made my whole life weirder. Loneliness and a sense of belonging became part of everyday life for many of us, and I was no exception.

WhatsApp has been a way to limit isolation with friends who were alone, cousins ​​who grew up in England, Pakistan, America, Turkey and Canada and it has helped us all find peace in these moments of devastation.

My grandparents were five minutes away, so I went for a jog and waved to them through the window.

Unfortunately, due to the restrictions, my father was stuck in Pakistan for months and my niece grew up far too quickly on the other side of the city. All those moments were tough and encouraged us to find new ways to stay connected when we couldn’t be in the same room.

Finally, as the pandemic continued, I founded my company, The LMF Network, an inclusion advisory and mentoring platform. I’ve unlocked the many faces of WhatsApp companies: automatic replies, muted notifications, and direct links to the services I provide.

Something that has made a huge difference as a business owner and a neurodivergent woman is the ability to manage your own list of customers and choose how you want to stay in touch with them.

For me, running a business is about having freedom and this app helped me do that.

It’s only relatively recently that I discovered that the messaging service synonymous with our phones actually has a desktop feature, meaning you can reply to messages while you’re still working without having to stop to look at your phone.

Sonya in front of the Tower Bridge

I’ll never look back since using this simple, free app (Photo: Sonya Barlow)

These tricks supported my lifestyle and didn’t put too much strain on my brain. I’ve grown my client list and team with WhatsApp, interviewed contributors from all over the world for my book on video calling, and even grown my business.

To avoid email fatigue while working on my business, I send links, documents and contact information via WhatsApp to my team and potential clients via chat to facilitate next steps or contract negotiations.

Initially, when I gave my WhatsApp number, customers looked at me strangely through Google Meets and wondered why.

Now they love that they have my direct line.

Of course WhatsApp also has disadvantages. You may be receiving spam messages or have fake accounts trying to steal your identity. Also, several countries do not allow the use of this app, which may affect a global company like mine.

I know it may seem strange to think of WhatsApp as a piece of technology I can’t live without, but it has changed my life.

It’s something so many of us use on a daily basis and I honestly think we take it for granted.

This window to the world has globalized me while staying local, connecting to a community far beyond London’s Nine Zones, keeping loved ones informed of my many adventures through a medium suited to them, and personal and business relationships built up on different continents.

Since using this simple, free app, I never want to look back, not even to the glory days of MSN Messenger!