The importance of being mindful about email etiquette
Before we became terrified of all human interaction due to the risk of Covid infection, if a co-worker took one of your Timbits without saying thanks or let a swinging door hit you in the face, you would have been totally miffed.
Social decorum is foundational to how we act toward and treat one another. It prevents us from eating (most) things with our hands and tells us to give up our seats on the bus to the elderly. These unwritten codes of conduct move the world forward and keep us in check.
Now that the majority of us live and work in the digital world, why are we so quick to throw away the dictates of etiquette we would be mortified to forgo in person?
Being mindful of how you write and manage your emails is as important as washing your hands. Like the latter, the former demonstrates you care about the people around you. You have respect for their time, and recognize their well-being is as valuable as yours. In the spirit of reprioritizing politeness in e-communications, I am following up my previous Own your Inbox blog with a very chill – not at all condescending – blog about email etiquette.
Here are my personal do’s and do not’s of crafting and dealing with emails within – and beyond – your work place.
1. Address your addressee
Can you imagine walking into your communal office, seeing a colleague and not acknowledging them until you needed something? No “Hello,” no inquiries about the kids, just a very terse, “I need such and such.” Of course you cannot picture this because it would be totally rude.
Yet, how many times do you send an email with no introduction? Nowadays, we are so used to sending emails, we treat them like texts – or worse – and we forget there are real live people on the other side. It takes less than ten seconds to pen, “Dear so and so” or “Hi Karen,” so don’t be stingy on the greetings.
2. Reply all is not your friend
This little tidbit is not only a good way to reduce oversaturated inboxes, but it’s also a great way of showing respect for the time of the people you are communicating with. Have you ever gotten caught up in a two-way email conversation between colleagues that has gone on so long you actually had to voice your request to be removed from the chain?
Yes, me too and, naturally, I was embarrassed. But, it was not me who should have borne that burden. Rather, it was the people who were discussing a project or personal matter that had nothing to do with me who should have said, “Oops, sorry. We are going to take this convo offline, wishing all the accidental recipients of this rapid-fire communication a swell day.”
Unless you are directly speaking to someone, signalling their need to act on or record whatever is being typed about, do not reply all. Be intentional and don’t be afraid to do someone the kindness of taking them off the email chain.
3. Short kings are cool. Shorthand is not.
Again, emails are not texts. Even in the most down-to-earth workplaces on earth, it’s never a bad idea to maintain some decorum in your communications. This is especially true with external emails. Do not use shorthand. One simply does not TTYL in adult, organizational life. Alternatively, we use full words and full sentences that convey we care about clarity, comprehension and keeping the respect of the person we talking 2.
4. Say my name…spell my name *sang in the tune of Destiny Child’s hit song*
We all make mistakes. But, one mistake we do not make – or we immediately apologize for – is when someone has very clearly written their name in their signature of an email and then we respond to said email spelling their name wrong. Please check and then check again when speaking to someone you’re not overly familiar with to ensure you are addressing them correctly.
This goes for pronouns as well. If someone has put their pronouns in their signature, use them. And use them properly.
5. Speaking of spelling…lest we forget editing is our friend
You’re in a rush. I am in a rush. Even though we have absolutely nowhere to go, the whole world is in a rush. When we are hurrying along like this, it’s easy to misplace a letter or even a word in our email communications. But, when you are invested in your professional development and want to make known your passion for your work – and other people – do not underestimate the importance of eradicating spelling and grammar mistakes from your emails.
What one person may completely ignore, may signal to another that you did not care enough about your interaction with them as to put your best words forward. So, make a good impression and, if phonetics are not your strong suit, invest in an editing program.
Email etiquette is to the world of business what manners are to the world of human interaction: essential, memorable and meaningful
Let’s all stop pretending we don’t have the time to write considerate emails. Our worlds – and inboxes – will be much happier places when we agree digital etiquette is akin to the pleases, thank yous and your welcomes we would scold even a child for misplacing. If you want to chat with me about communication best practices, inbox overhauls or any of the other big and small pieces of the personal leadership puzzle, reach out to me and we will do better together.
Janic
