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Emoji secrets REVEALED: How to keep your family safe with a single symbol
When my son Ian was 3, I bought him a cellphone. It had three buttons: Call Mom, call Dad and call Grandma. He was young, but it helped us all feel better that he could reach us.
There may be situations where your child, partner or parent can’t make a phone call … or worse. They could have someone looking over their shoulder when they text. That’s when a secret emoji could save the day.
It’s a way to ask for help quickly and you can do this without alerting anyone, unlike if you made a phone call. I’ve shared this with my family so all of us are on the same page.
Why an emoji?
These little images are often worth a thousand words, especially if they’re part of an inside joke with your family and friends.
In an emergency, an emoji is less conspicuous than a word or phrase — which could signal someone else if your child is reaching out for help. If your child can’t make a call to you or someone is watching them text, an emoji can serve as the perfect distress signal.
Which one should we pick?
Make sure it’s easy to remember — but not one your family usually uses. That’s going to cause unnecessary confusion and probably distress. Don’t use commonly used emojis, like hearts or smiley faces.
Here are 10 emojis that could be used as a secret signal in case of an emergency:
- 🐙 Octopus
- 🦒 Giraffe
- 🦄 Unicorn
- 🍄 Mushroom
- 🌋 Volcano
- 🦉 Owl
- 🎠 Carousel Horse
- 🛰️ Satellite
- 🎏 Carp Streamer
- 🛎️ Bellhop Bell
How to have the talk
Don’t just mention this in passing. Have a formal sit-down with your family to discuss the plan. Make sure everyone knows your family emoji should only be used in emergencies — no funny business.
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🐱💤 = Catnap: Most think this smiley-faced emoji — 🙂 — is the digital equivalent of a fake smile. Don’t use it. Instead, pick something happier. I like 🤗, 🥰 and 😃. But lately, it’s hard to beat the 🫶.
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🍎 Three shortcuts for Macs:
- Ctrl + Cmd + spacebar: Opens the emoji picker.
- Cmd + Shift + 5: Opens the screenshot tool for capturing the entire screen, a window or a selected portion. You can also record your screen from this menu.
- Cmd + Opt + Esc: Opens the force-quit menu.
🪟 Three shortcuts for PCs:
- Windows key + . (period) or ; (semicolon): Opens the emoji picker.
- Windows key + Shift + S: Opens the Snip & Sketch tool for capturing (and editing) screenshots.
- Alt + F6: Allows you to switch between multiple windows of the same application (e.g., different browser windows).
Windows key + . (period) or Windows key + ; (semicolon): This opens the Emoji Panel, allowing you to insert emojis into any text field.
Add an emoji faster with a Windows keyboard shortcut. Just hold down the Windows key + . (period) and voila! 👏
An emoji is worth a thousand words: Save time and respond with a 🙌 instead of writing out, “Wow, great work on this” in a Google Doc. Highlight any block of text, then click the emoji icon on the right. Btw, some people think the thumbs-up is passive-aggressive.
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The two dominant mobile phone operating systems have such large user bases it is almost impossible not to communicate with someone on a competing platform. But that can create problems, as Android and iOS are less compatible than you might think. Tap or click here to see an emoji you use all the time probably isn’t what you think.
This emoji you use all the time probably isn't what you think
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There were so many cool features rolled out with iOS 14 that it’s hard to keep count. Thanks to the update, iPhone users now have widgets, shortcuts for emoji and a slew of other new features to play with, too.
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Just like any other form of communication, texting can be rather boring and could use a bit of spicing up. Even with the introduction of emojis, texting is a bit lackluster. Tap or click to create your own emoji combinations.
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With so much turmoil in the world today, it’s important to take a moment to appreciate the lighter side of life. While you’re at home flattening the curve, making time for something fun can greatly improve your mental health and attitude.