It’s often the little things that make a difference with our emails.  With that thought in mind, here are three easy things to watch out for in your emails this week:

1.  Make sure your contact info is in your signature.  Already got it set up on your computer?  Great!  What about your mobile device?  Your readers should never have to hunt for this information (and they don’t really care what you used to send the email), so make sure all your devices are up to date.

2.  Please don’t misspell your addressee’s name.  Even with proofreading, sometimes our fingers get the best of us.  It happens.  But whatever you do, please don’t misspell the addressee’s name.  You’ll have disrespected one of that person’s favorite words!  Especially when the name is usually right there in the email address, there’s no excuse.  (For the record, I do forgive anyone who’s sent an email to “Sheryl” instead of “Cheryl.”)

3.  Always introduce attachments.  It’s very confusing to receive an email that has an attachment but no explanation of it in the body of the email.  Even if the reader is expecting an attachment, it could be missed if you don’t at least say something like, “The report is attached.”  Plus, attachments show up differently in different email systems, so what’s obvious on your screen may not be obvious to your readers.

Every email is a chance to be better, and now you have three easy ways to step up your game.  Have a fantastic week! 

"What do you want to be when you grow up?"

Remember being asked that question?  Depending on my age, I may have said I wanted to be a veterinarian, a lawyer, or an international businesswoman.  One answer I never gave?  A writer.  If you had given me the option of doing algebra all day or writing a two-page essay, I would have picked the algebra every time.  Yet, strangely enough, I did become a writer – and so did you.

The day we started using email on the job is the day we all became professional writers.  (After all, you’re spending a good chunk of your day writing while getting paid.)  Unfortunately, most of us don’t realize we’re writers because we think this designation only applies to people like journalists, novelists, or copywriters.  What we do isn’t writing…it’s just email.  Right?  Wrong!

Because we don’t think of ourselves as writers, we often don’t take our craft as seriously as a so-called “professional writer.”  We don’t train; we don’t pore over our words; we treat editing as a nice-to-have.  The result is that we wind up with a lot of email lemons out there – damaging, unproductive emails that waste time and hold us back.

I want you to change your mentality today – right now – and start recognizing yourself as a writer.  Recognition is only the first step, but once you’ve taken it, you’ve opened a door to greater productivity and stronger relationships.  Like any good writer, you’ll have to hone your skills, but fortunately, every email is a chance to be better.  If the typical inbox is any indication, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to practice!

Ever notice that just before a long holiday weekend (with lots of people inevitably running out the door for vacation), there’s an uptick in “brain dump” emails?  You know the ones…long, rambling messages…lots of ambiguous action items.  The sender apparently expects you to decipher the email and knock out the to-do list – no questions asked.  After all, once a message leaves their inbox, it absolves them of responsibility, right?

Wrong!

If something is worth doing, it’s worth doing well.  If you’re scrambling to get out of the office and need to hand off a project electronically, the least you can do is:

1. Thoughtfully outline the background information (Where did this project originate?  Why is it important?)
2. Give clear deliverables (a bulleted list would be great here)
3. Provide timing for each deliverable
4. Specify who can answer questions about this project in your absence
5. Say “thank you”

By listing out this information, your email will be more of a “brain share” than a “brain dump.”  The recipient will appreciate being able to take on the project without wasting a bunch of time decoding the email.

If you were recently on the receiving end of a “brain dump,” I sympathize.  Depending on who sent it, you might just have to power through.  If you can, however, try to put the responsibility back on the sender.  If the email is truly confusing and the timing isn’t too tight, politely tell the sender that you need to talk through the request before you take action.  The message might look something like this:

Thanks for sharing this information with me – it looks like we have a lot to work on!  Before I can get started, I do have quite a few questions, though.  I’ll set up a quick meeting so that we can talk through the project and its deliverables.

As the “brain dump” recipient, remember the frustration you experienced and make sure that you don’t ever dump on someone.

Remember - it’s up to each one of us to be thoughtful with our emails.  Turning “brain dumps” into “brain shares” is just one more way to avoid sending an email lemon.

If you’ve ever sworn that “reply all” is the root of all evil in your overstuffed inbox, you aren’t alone.  The Nielsen Company was even celebrated several years ago when they disabled the button on their corporate email system.  Let’s be real, though – the button isn’t evil.  It’s the person thoughtlessly using it who is the problem. In Nielsen’s case, the company was reacting to a senior leader who used it to accidentally send a rude email to the whole company.  Maybe in your organization, you just wish people would stop “replying all” to Susan’s note about cupcakes in the conference room.  In either case, a little extra thought and awareness would go a long way.

We can’t always control other people’s use of “reply all,” but we can control ourselves (and hopefully be a good influence).  Make sure you aren’t using “reply all” in these three situations: 

1. In response to mass communication – If you see that the email is a generic message being sent to your whole company, a group of conference attendees, etc., there’s no reason for you to include everyone on your response.  It’s great that you’re RSVPing to the company picnic, but the whole building doesn’t need to know.
2. To point out someone’s mistake – Even if it’s something simple like a missing attachment, please let people maintain their dignity.  Send your comment only to the sender – he or she will be appreciative and possibly return the favor some day.
3. To send a personal message to one person – One of the most common personal messages is the “thank you” email.  If you feel compelled to thank the sender, that’s fine.  The whole group, however, doesn’t need the message in their inbox.  (Leaders who are using the email to show recognition to a team member are an exception here.)

Every email is an opportunity to be better, and we can all stand to be more conscious of using the “reply all” button – conscious being the key word.  Before robotically clicking it, take two seconds to ask yourself if “reply all” is really appropriate.  Your coworkers will thank you.