With advances in technology, the internet, instant messaging and now smartphones, there are many channels and modalities in which to interact with others. Yet this inundation of communication means has resulted in many losing their communication skills. Because of some inherent factors of online communication that limit its benefits, I believe the idea proposed is generally true.

Social media interactions, for one, are more emotionless compared to traditional face-to-face ones. This means online users, especially young ones, are more likely to have less emotional exchange, whether it be facial or physical. While such lack is not universally reported, some kids, who sit on their phones for long hours, have been seen to become less emotional and, most sadly, less communicative.

Less frequent real-life interactions do also entail a feeling of isolation. Surely, children develop digital literacy, but the price they pay for it is that they may feel left out, if they lead a home-sitting way of life. Though these young people can remain in touch with their social circles online, the physical absence of their friends is likely the catalyst of negative feelings, from depression to alienation.

In conclusion, the knock-on effects of children overusing their phones are deleterious, ranging from emotionlessness to social isolation. Based on these arguments, I contend that underage users of computers and phones are increasingly less sociable and thus less communicative.

Planning for future is often considered a useless habit, so some claim it is more reasonable to shift focus onto the present. I regard this view as firmly invalid and also believe future planning has numerous benefits.

One of these advantages is well-organized career and family goals. With well-rounded plans for future, it takes much less effort to, for example, purchase a luxurious car, pay down a mortgage or aid family members financially. This, in turn, not only leads to stronger familial bonds and higher contentment levels but also cultivates discipline, a valuable trait that is highly relevant in virtually all areas of life.

Another positive is more effective decision-making. When faced with financial challenges, like how to distribute a budget so basic needs are covered and some money is saved up, people are more likely to foresee upcoming living costs and thus avoid wasting resources, such as time and money. Such foresight can also translate into better devised plans, thereby serving as a tool to effectively tackle potential obstacles, like loans or unforeseen expenses.

At a social level, laying out future plans may contribute to higher agility in face of difficulties. Because strategic plans help people remain on track and stimulate better decision-making, it is more likely that these decision-makers would also be more considerate to approach their future goals from multiple perspectives to succeed. A father would definitely seek ways to gain promotion at work if he were to cover his children's prospective college or university fees. For this, he might also turn to friends and relatives to secure a part-time job or senior management to negotiate his salary, seeking various means of income.

In conclusion, some assert planning for future has no benefits and hence a waste of time; they therefore point to present day as a better alternative to focus on. My firm conviction is that this is an invalid statement, as plans offer multiple benefits, from better-organized goals and good decision-making to higher flexibility to achieve goals.

The chart compares the proportions of commuters who used various transport types to get to work from 2000 to 2020, at 5-year intervals. Overall, over this period, car usage was the primary type of transport, though it experienced a substantial and uninterrupted decline. Buses and bicycles, meanwhile, followed gradually rising trajectories, with the latter remaining the least used in all the years.

The dominant transport category, cars, was the only one to have seen a drop. In 2000, cars were used by nearly two-thirds of commuters, a figure that fell steadily to just over 40%. This downward trend marked a roughly 25-percent decrease from the original point, and despite that, cars were the most preferred transport category in each year.

The remaining means of transport recorded much lower figures, with buses and bicycles standing at 25% and 6%, the lowest point on the chart, in 2000, respectively. While the share of bus commuters had diminished slightly by 2010 to exactly 20%, that of cyclists narrowed the gap and comprised half that amount. A decade later, the former proportion went up to a quarter, in contrast to the other figure, which remained unaltered since 2010 yet always stood at the other end of the spectrum.

The graph compares visitor intake, by purpose of visit, from 1994 to 1998. In short, travelling abroad became much more common over the period, especially for holiday visits. The only exception, though, was unspecified reasons, the least popular category, which reverted to its initial level at the end, despite a rise in the mid-period.

More pronounced increases were seen in holiday and business visits. Holiday trips, the leading reason for travelling abroad in the UK, recorded a slight fall in 1995 to 14,898, down from the original 15,246. Yet after that, the number climbed uninterruptedly to a chart high of 20,700. Following distantly behind, business visits came second on the list and experienced a continuous growth to 3,957, compared to 3,155 at the outset of the span.

The remaining categories witnessed a less sharp rise, in the case of visiting friends or relatives, and a bounce-back, in the case of unlisted reasons. In 1994, there were 2,689 visits by UK residents to friends and relatives living outside the UK, a figure that, after an insignificant decline in 1995, went up to its highest 3,181 in 1998; this also marked the smallest growth rate. At the other end of the spectrum were uncategorized trips, with the count standing at a mere 982 in 1994. Then, it fell marginally a year later yet later followed an upward trajectory to 1,054 in 1997, after which there was a notable decrease to near the 1994 level.

What exerts a greater influence on one's future success is a contentious matter, with some claiming it is parents and family whose contributions are far more significant compared to those of school. I fully support this notion, though I also acknowledge some importance of schooling in achieving success.

Flatly downplaying the significance of school in a person's successful life path is, however, misguided. Exposed to standardized tests and academic disciplines, students gain deep insights into various faculties. This constant exposure may reveal hidden talents, ones that might lay perfect foundation to reach heights in, for example, physics or math. Elon Musk is one prominent figure who followed such a path and is now one of the richest and most accomplished academics and entrepreneurs in the world. On an individual level, schools may also serve as a network to expand business or professional prospects in years to come. Some ex-classmates remain in touch for many years post-graduation, thereby bolstering bonds between them and thus elevating the chances of business partnerships. Given the rapport built between these individuals through years of studying together, they can communicate with each other more effectively. This is in stark contrast to newly-introduced investors who would probably take pre-cautions when running a business together.

Despite these views, I assert that sufficient parental guidance is a cornerstone of a child's future success in both academic and professional settings. In familial environments, students learn a range of valuable skills, such as perseverance, discipline and critical thinking, all of which are much needed to succeed in academic and working lives. In contrast, schools are much less effective in cultivating those skills because of rigid and highly structured approaches used in lessons. On top of that, the skills cultivated in familial settings are far more practical in comparison to an array of academic skills and professional competencies taught in schools. A diligent, goal-oriented and disciplined child is more likely to be persistent enough to overcome struggles later on than a child with developed academic abilities yet poor real-life skills. It is simply because not all the subjects in school curricula successfully translate into the skills required to climb the career ladder, for instance.

To sum up, while there is some efficacy of schools in nurturing successful individuals, my firm conviction is that families act as a better foundation to succeed later in life. This is because specialist knowledge provided and abilities promoted in familial environments are more hands-on than those in school.

In today's ever more criminal world, anti-social conduct, including but not limited to disrespect to others, is on the rise. The root causes of this seem to be hyper-competitive job market and eroding societal bonds, yet with reforms imposed on working hours and more publicly funded community events, the problem is likely to be notably mitigated.