"To effectively communicate, we must realize that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our communication with others." Tony Robbins
Personal communications include emails, text messages, online chats or direct messages, personal interviews, telephone conversations, live speeches, unrecorded classroom lectures, memos, letters, messages from non-archived discussion groups or online bulletin boards, and so on. (APAstyle.org).
When you communicate with friends, family, business or strangers you are usually communicating personally and not professionally. Some examples of personal communication include:
a text message to a friend or group of friends
your participation in online chats
involvement in a discussion group
emails to friends & family
In personal communications, individuals speak casually, tend to share information, use commonly accepted language, use acronyms, worry little about spelling, punctuation or grammar, and use more animated language.
Take a look at the following conversations and decide whether they represent personal or business communication:
"Hey, when are we meeting up tonight at Omar's house?"
"Thank you for calling Fred's Furnaces, we value your call and apologize for the wait time for a customer service representative."
"I disagree! In episode 46, season 5, he didn't say that he had super powers, he merely said that he had a great memory.
"Can you stop repeating what this discussion board is about in every reply?"
"Sarah, thank you for your request for more company information."