The longer an email chain is, the less likely it is to get a response. Remember, it may take an extra moment or two to cc the proper persons but by doing so, you’re saving someone else the trouble of wasting time with unnecessary emails. If the answer is yes, then you’ve justified your decision.Īnd my advice is don’t use reply to all button unless you’re confident that everyone should be looped in the email.
Ask yourself, “If this person is not in on the loop on this email, will they be missing out on something they need to know about?” If the answer is no, then you probably shouldn’t cc them. Think carefully before you add someone as a recipient. This version I think is more to the point, “Hello, Please review the attached spreadsheet and ensure that everyone’s vacation requests are put in. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.” If you have not already done so, please fill out the attached spreadsheet so I can review them and process everyone’s request. “Hello, I just wanted to make sure everyone has taken the time to put in their requests for vacation so I can start processing them early enough. Here’s an example of what I would not say. For instance, it would be too complicated to write “Request to Make Sure that All Employees and Management Staff Have Selected Their Vacation Days for the Next Quarter” when it would be easier to say “Vacation Schedule Request for Next Quarter.” Also, if your email is referencing something very specific like a work order or invoice, put that information in the subject line like “RE: Work Order #93806” or “Follow-up to Invoice# 3DX-Y68.”Īnd make sure that your email’s purpose is very clear. When you’re writing the subject line, keep it so that the reader knows what to expect without making it too complex. Emails are usually sent for the following reasons: 1. Make sure you have a specific subject line that gets to the point and most important of all, have a clear call to action. Just make sure you delete them before hitting send.
#A person getting sucked into a black hole how to#
With that said, if those empty phrases help you to compose your thoughts and spend less time thinking about how to set up your email, then go ahead and put them in.
The more “calories” your email contains, the more “saturated” it becomes with wasteful content instead of being “lean” and “proportionate” to hold your reader’s attention span. Most of the time when we write, we include filler phrases like “I just wanted to say…” or “In response to the email that you sent me yesterday….” It’s best to leave these empty phrases out. Once you've decided that email is the best way to go, then you should consider how you’re going to construct your email, following a few simple guidelines:Īgain, shorter is better. IM can be an easy way to keep a “real time conversation” going while having enough flexibility to “pause” conversations as interruptions come up and need to be dealt with. If you need to discuss something complicated or something that requires a lot of going back and forth, then you should either consider picking up the phone or using IM if appropriate. Emails should be scannable so the person on the receiving end can move right along.
Keep in mind that email is meant to communicate information quickly. Make the decision ahead of time on how you should respond. Should I Email or Not? That is the Question You Must AnswerĪnd it’s not a rhetorical question, either.
So what can be done to keep this from happening? And even more so for the person reading emails. Emails with no subject line, a vague subject line, too little information, too much information, no clear call to action…it’s frustrating to see. Sound familiar? It’s unfortunate because this happens a lot in the work world. They’re never seen again and they never get a response. What I’m really talking about is the digital version of what I call the “Great Cyber Black Hole of Unread Emails.” What that means is that tons of poor, awkwardly written emails are getting sucked into a vortex every day where they all get lost forever.
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