Several years ago, I was copied on an email from an irate manager that still sticks with me to this day.
In the email, the manager was basically venting his frustration with the habit of everyone in the department sending “fire and forget” emails, not following up, and assuming that sending an email is an acceptable solution to practically every problem.
It sticks with me because it is so true!
Email is such a part of our lives that we hardly think about it.
All too often, we send an email then mark a task off our list. But emails often require further elaboration. We don’t take the time to express our feelings in email, and if we do, we can get sucked into spending an hour writing an email that “sounds” right.
We don’t want to be accusatory, or demanding, but sometimes we need to relay importance and urgency or just make a point. In return, we need confirmation of understanding.
How often have you received a reply that led you to think that you are being ignored, brushed off, or worse, by the person you sent it to?
What does it mean when you have sent out a 5 paragraph email and get a reply of simply “ok”?
Everyone is occasionally guilty of bad email etiquette, both senders and receivers.
I encourage you to take a moment to consider your own email habits and how you can improve your email communication.