Isn’t it frustrating to forget an attachment?  I know it’s a little thing, but somehow it still has the power to send pangs of embarrassment through us (or maybe that’s just me!).  My very first job back in college was as manuscript coordinator for Six Sigma Forum Magazine.  It almost exclusively involved sending emails with attachments back and forth.  Of course, it wasn’t long before I hit “send” and oops!  I had forgotten the attachment.  It seems a little dramatic now, but at the time, I was horrified.  I’m talking instant sweat beads.  After quickly correcting my error, I resolved to never let it happen again.  And it didn’t – as long as I used my new system.

We’ve all heard that the secret is in the sauce.  Well, when it comes to email attachments, the secret is in the system.  (Or if the word “system” sounds scary, just think of it as a routine.)  The point is that as long as you always follow the same steps, you won’t forget the attachment.  Here are two super simple systems you can start using today:

1.      The pre-draft attach – Attach your documents before you start writing the email.  A lot of times, we’re tempted to draft the email and then add the attachments, but that method makes it too easy to hit “send” without including them.

2.      The word trigger – A colleague of mine shared that as soon as she’d write the word “attached” in her email, she’d pause and include the related attachment.  That word was her trigger for ensuring the attachment always made it.  This approach is great because the word “attached” or some variation should always be in your email if you’re including an attachment.

Easy, right?  All you have to do is pick one and stick with it!  And yes, there are software add-ons and other features built into Gmail or newer Outlook versions that can also remind you to include attachments.  If that’s your cup of tea, go for it.  However, I love that the systems above work regardless of your email client.

As for my system, I’ve been using the “pre-draft attach” ever since that embarrassing day in college, and it has served me well.  On the rare occasion that I do forget an attachment, it’s only because I carelessly ignored the system.  Thankfully, I don’t break out in sweat over it anymore.  I just get a fresh appreciation for the value of the system.

Do you have a great system for remembering attachments?  Don’t keep it to yourself!  Please share it in the comments.

It’s easy to identify other people’s email lemons, but what about our own?  Are we filling our coworkers’ inboxes with frustration?  Here are 10 ways to find out (and correct the problem):

1.      You send emails without a subject line.  Stop it.  People need subject lines.  It helps them prioritize their inbox and find messages later.  Always make sure you have one – no exceptions.  Keep them short (ideally 5 words or less), specific, and meaningful to both you and the reader.

2.      When you send simple requests via email, the recipient usually writes back with a bunch of questions.  You aren’t giving the recipient enough context for the request.  People like to know why they are being asked to do something.  You also have to put yourself in their shoes by considering their knowledge level on the topic.  What other details might they need to know in order to fulfill this request?  What questions might they have?  Preemptively addressing these details saves a lot of back and forth (a.k.a. distraction) later.

3.      When you send an email to a group, it results in an avalanche of emails.  Either you didn’t give enough context (as described in #2) or you broached a topic that shouldn’t have ever been introduced by email.  Not that meetings don’t have their pitfalls, but they can be a much better forum for kicking off new initiatives, discussing complex problems, or any other topic requiring a healthy exchange of dialogue.

4.      You regularly misspell the recipient’s name.  If you’re this careless with his or her name, you’re probably careless with the rest of your email, too.  Pay attention.

5.      Your emails consist of one long paragraph.  Yes, this depends on how each person pulls up the email, but if your paragraphs are longer than five sentences, you’re probably in the danger zone.  Don’t make your coworkers’ eyes glaze over…make sure you only have one thought per paragraph.

6.      You don’t tell people why you are writing to them…until the end of your email.  Don’t make people wade through sentence after sentence – wondering where it’s all headed.  Tell them why you are reaching out in the first sentence or two and then follow up with the details.

7.      You always use “reply all.”  Just because you have the option doesn’t mean it’s always appropriate to use…in fact, it’s not.  For example, don’t use “reply all” to send personal messages or to point out someone’s mistake.  The key is to be thoughtful and intentional about where you are directing your message.

8.      Your emails have some sort of wallpaper or cutesy background effect.  Get rid of it.  You have plenty of opportunities to show your personality at work – this isn’t one of them.  These effects are distracting to your reader.  Plus, they often screw up the formatting of the whole email trail, which is super frustrating for anyone trying to respond to you.

9.      When you email a group of people, you have a hard time getting a response.  Take a look at one of those emails.  Did you direct it to a specific person, or did you send it to the whole group in hopes that someone would be proactive and respond?  If it’s the latter, you’re setting yourself up for failure every time.  Eliminate the ambiguity.  Address your email to someone.

10.   You’re “too busy” to proofread.  Reading over your email at least once before hitting “send” isn’t optional.  It’s important to give yourself an opportunity to catch potentially embarrassing, confusing typos and grammatical errors, as well as make sure your finished work actually hangs together.  (And did you include your attachments?)

Let’s be kind to our coworkers by minimizing the sour, frustrating “email lemons” we’re putting out there.  This list is a great start in identifying our problem spots, so share it around the office and let me know what you’d like to add to it!

Of all the email lemons, one of the worst is the Swoop & Poop.  These are emails that don’t add value to a conversation and are often sent for selfish or ego-centric reasons.  People swoop in, drop their “gift” in your inbox, and then fly off again.  I’ve observed two varieties:

1. The Brain Dump:  If you’re asked to do something via a lengthy, disorganized, and unclear message, please see my post on a special kind of Swoop & Poop called The Brain Dump.
   
2. The Quick Poop: Email for the sake of email, these are short, unhelpful messages that clutter your inbox.
   

Why do people swoop & poop?  One or more of the following reasons usually applies:

• They mistake sending the email for doing real, thoughtful work.
  
• They believe they are so smart and/or authoritative that the recipients should be happy to have gotten the input – even if it wasn’t actually helpful.
  
• They haven’t given any thought to your current workload and priorities.
  

Here are a few Swoop & Poop examples (I’m sure you can think of more!):

The “hey, I’m here” email
A lot of people do this – especially on weekends – because they think, “Hey guys!  Look at me!  I just dumped another email in your inbox so you’ll think I’m working hard.”  More often than not, the content of the email is meaningless.  Sure, every now and then, you might need to send a strategically timed email to let your boss know you’re working above and beyond, but don’t abuse the tactic.  If you use it too often (and your emails really are meaningless), people will see right through it.

The “let’s look into this” email
Usually sent by a higher up, this email is typically a forward with a short line at the top asking you to dig deeper into whatever messy issue is below.  The problem is that the direction is vague.  There’s no sense of timing, priority level, or the desired outcome, which then causes stress and frustration for the recipient.  The email either gets ignored or results in….you guessed it…yet another email seeking clarification.

We can avoid doing a “swoop and poop” by always asking ourselves, “Does this email add value to the conversation?”  Here are a few ways to tell that you’re adding value:

• You’re responding to a question or request
  
• You’re providing specific direction, including: what needs to be done, why it’s important, and when it’s needed
  
• You’re providing new information; e.g. a proposal for next steps or an update on a conversation with a coworker and how it affects the project 
  

Remember: not every email warrants a response, so please put yourself in the other person’s shoes and think about whether you’d want that message in your inbox.  If you wouldn’t literally poop on someone else’s computer, then don’t do it figuratively either!

Email is more than just email.  And if you work on a global team, the sooner you realize this truth, the better.  Beyond a simple exchange of information, it’s about building rapport, creating goodwill, and strengthening relationships.  After all, ignoring someone on another continent is much easier than ignoring someone down the hall.  It helps to give those international colleagues every reason to want to work with you.  Part 1 – Time Management and Part 2 - Clarity of this series are a great start, but if you don’t pay attention to your tone, you’ll only get so far.  That’s why I’m giving you three tone-helpers you’ll use every day:

When questioning content, avoid the word “you.”  It’s a tiny word with a huge impact.  Especially in written form, it sounds accusatory and immediately puts someone on the defensive.  Check out these examples and think about which version you’d rather receive:

The “You” Version:  Why did you write the report this way?
The Alternative:  Why was the report written this way?

The “You” Version:  I don’t understand why you reached out to her.
The Alternative:  Could you help me understand why she was contacted?

The “You” Version:  You made a mistake in the 2nd paragraph.
The Alternative:  There was a mistake in the 2nd paragraph.

If you’re like most people, you’d rather receive the alternative version.  Thankfully, there’s always a way to remove the “you,” so watch for those opportunities and you’ll maintain valuable goodwill.

When communicating even slightly unpleasant information, using the “good-bad-good” formula is the way to go.  There are real people on the other end of the “send” button, and you will get a lot further if you allow them to save face.  Here’s how to do it:

1.     Express appreciation and/or gratitude.
2.     Share the less pleasant news.
3.     End on a positive note by expressing your appreciation and/or gratitude again.

Simple examples of the good/bad/good formula in action:

Thanks so much for sharing these ideas.  Because of the tight timeline, we won’t be able to incorporate them into this project, but we will definitely consider them for the next one.  We really appreciate hearing your thoughts, so if anything else comes to mind, please don’t hesitate to be in touch.

I really appreciate your hard work on the brochure.  It looks great!  I only noticed one small issue – could the phone number please be adjusted to 555-223-7469?  Thanks for all your help!

It’s better to ask than to demand.  “Would you please send the report by Monday?” sounds much more pleasant than “Send the report by Monday.”  Both sentences convey the same information, but given the choice, most of us would rather be asked than told.  Start paying attention to how often you are making demands and see if you can’t turn more of those statements into questions.


In Part 1, I shared how I led a US-based team that worked with 20 other offices around the world.  We didn’t get to see people from the other offices very often, but on one of those few occasions, a team member from Australia thanked me.  Why?  He appreciated our emails!  He said they always showed that we cared about him and his team.  It was gratifying to hear that our email efforts had paid off.  A huge part of showing that we cared came from our tone – and the use of the tips I’ve shared here.

Never forget the human element of email.  Sometimes the distance of global teams makes it easier to overlook, but I assure you that there’s still a person with feelings on the other end.  Show them that you care by paying attention to your tone.  It makes more of an impact that you realize.

As much as I love working with global teams, I’ll be the first to admit that it’s tough.  Language barriers, multiple time zones, and cultural differences on top of heavy email use…as if projects weren’t already hard enough!  Fortunately, there are simple ways we can ensure that our global communication results in success.  I’m breaking it down for you in a 3-part series, so refresh yourself on Part 1, and get ready to layer on Part 2 – Clarity.

Unclear emails result in wasted time (which rapidly adds up if there’s a significant time difference).  Thanks to the above-mentioned challenges, achieving clarity is sometimes more difficult–but even more important–with global teams.  Here are three tactics to help you:

A picture is worth a thousand words, so use the picture. If you are questioning or giving direction about a detail from a document, piece of artwork, web page, etc. and notice that you’re using a lot of words to describe it, mark up a screen shot instead.  (My personal favorite tool for this exercise is Snagit.)  The picture is much more likely to get your point across on the first try.

The bulleted list is your friend.  If you are listing three or more items, you should immediately consider turning them into a bulleted or numbered list.  This tip is especially important if you are requesting information or actions from the reader.  When lists of items are included in the body of a paragraph, it’s almost guaranteed that one of them will get missed.

Watch out for expressions that may not translate.  For example, if you need a ball park idea of when they’ll have the information, dropped the ball on getting that answer, or want a full court press until the end of the week, you might not make your point.  (Writing from a US perspective, it’s amazing how often we use sports idioms!)  Sometimes these phrases are so engrained in our language that we don’t even realize we’re using them, so do this quick check:  Read your email and look for any phrase has a different meaning than its literal translation.  If you find one, replace it with the literal meaning.

Don’t let unclear emails get in the way of your global team’s goals.  Keep these clarity tips in mind, and stay tuned for Part 3 – Tone!

I had always been conscientious when it came to email, but working internationally took my focus to another level.  Since email was the main day-to-day communication method, I realized that my words had to work even harder.  I gave a lot of thought to questions like:

How can I build a strong relationship with someone I’ve never met?
How can I save time?
How can my emails serve the other person so that we’ll both get the best outcome?

Over time, I embraced and developed a number of practices that produced fantastic results.  I’m breaking the essentials into a 3-part series – starting with time management.  If you don’t communicate internationally, no problem.  I've found that the best practices from international communication also apply to domestic emails, so these tips will be helpful whether you work in one time zone or ten.

Respond to emails within 24 hours. 
I used to manage a US-based team that was the communication hub for a network of offices around the world.  (We were the corporate office, but we didn’t like to refer to ourselves that way.  It sounded too…corporate.  Maybe there’s another lesson.)  I’ll never forget when the manager of our Hong Kong office told me that we were the best “home office” she had ever worked with.  She was only a few months into the job, but she was already paying us this high compliment.  The main reason?  We were responsive to emails.  When she – or anyone else – reached out to us, we had a response to her inbox by the time she came into work the next day.

The 24-hour responsiveness guideline is a great way to quickly build credibility – and start relationships on the right foot.  You may not have the answer yet, but at least acknowledge the email and buy yourself some time.  No one wants to feel like their message went into a black hole, and this feeling is only exacerbated with large time zone differences.  Being responsive lets people know there is a thoughtful human being behind the computer. 

Preemptively answer questions.
With a little extra thought on the front end, you can often save a whole extra day of back-and-forth.  Think about the questions your readers might have as a result of your email – and go ahead and answer them.  Put yourself in their shoes.  What might they be wondering?  Did you explain why you needed X?  Did you give enough information for them to do Y?  Are there next steps you can communicate as a result of them doing A or B?  Obviously you don’t want to turn your email into a 10-page manual, but preemptively answering basic questions will save time for both of you.

Respond to the real need or question – not just the one that appears at first glance.
Sometimes people have a hard time expressing what they need, and if you read their email too quickly, you’re going to miss the true request.  Especially if they are writing in a non-native language, some deciphering may be involved.  (Before you get judgmental, try writing an email in their native language.)  Other times, they will ask for one thing, but if you take the time to truly understand the email, it’s apparent that they are getting at a separate issue.  It’s time well spent.  You’ll save at least another day of additional back and forth, as well as earn a reputation for being helpful and smart. 


Stay tuned for Part 2 - Clarity!