I’ll try to keep it short, and define some guidelines for how to communicate using emails. I found these to be working and helped me communicate better and with greater impact.
- Start using skype/phone/in-person communication instead of emails when you need to ask/tell/consult with a specific person.
- Start you email with the name of the people it is important for i.e. “Hi John”
- TO – in the TO list put people who needs to do an action with your email.
- CC – use the CC list for people who may need to know about this issue.
- Do not send an email to a group unless you have to.
- Thank you emails – if you really feel the need, send directly to the person you refer to and not to the group
- Keep it short, and make sure you write what you want in the first 2-3 sentences
- Consider highlighting the important aspects in the email
- Use outlook conversation view so you won’t need to waste time reading 10 emails if you can check the last one only.
- As much as possible use email to communicate decisions (see #1) not asking questions.
Following these guidelines will empower you to:
- Send/Receive less emails.
- Get higher relevance for the emails as today many of these emails are not relevant for most of the people who get them.
- Improve email productivity as today many of these emails are too long and don’t have a concrete action item or purpose.
Use direct verbal communication that is much more effective in many cases.
Nu fi egoist, dă mai departe să ajungă la tot poporul
