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How to Reduce the Amount of E-mail You Receive - Several Tips
By Marsha Egan,
CPCU, PCC is CEO of The Egan Group, Inc.,
Reading, PA, U.S.A.
marsha at MarshaEgan com
http://www.marshaegan.com
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People
complain about all the e-mail they receive, and how much work it is for
them to handle. And it is true, the number of e-mails being sent is definitely
on the increase.
The reality is there are quite a number of things that you can do, personally,
to keep your e-mails to a minimum. Here are a few tips:
Be very clear. By making sure that the content of your e-mails is very
understandable, you can avoid people e-mailing you with questions. Taking
a small amount of time on the front end to read through the e-mail you
are about to send can go a long way in avoiding a return question.
Make the subject line detailed. By including detailed information in the
subject lines, your recipients will be able to sort and respond with the
right priority. The detailed subject line will also help YOU sort and
handle responses because you know exactly what the item entails.
Use only one subject per e-mail. The reality is that most people skim.
If you put in two requests, there is a strong likelihood that only one
of the requests will be responded to. It is more effective to send two
e-mails with different subjects, than to incorporate two subjects into
one e-mail. This practice is also helpful for people who want to file
the messages.
Place the main point, assignment, or request in the first two lines of
the e-mail. People have a tendency to build up to a conclusion when they
write; this tendency makes it very difficult, at times, for readers to
figure out what the main issue or request is. By putting your main point
in the first two sentences, you can avoid misinterpretations and get readers
focused on exactly what you want, right from the get- go.
Copy only the people who read or need the message. For every extraneous
person copied on an e-mail, you have potential to receive a response.
Not only are they getting extra e-mail, but it is likely that they will
return with a response.
Resist getting involved in threads that are not related to your work.
It could be that the sender copied you extraneously on an e-mail. Before
you respond, consider its relative importance to your position and your
work. Once you respond, you have put yourself in the game.
Place only one name in the subject line, if assigning work. When multiple
names are shown in the subject line, the recipients many times assume
that is the other person who will handle the work. This is a great way
to get nothing done. By assigning one person to the subject line, it is
very clear that you are expecting that person to respond. And, oh by the
way, if that person is the wrong person, he or she will tell you very
quickly.
Send less e-mail. While this may seem a no-brainer, e-mail begets e-mail.
Sometimes it is better and easier to pick up the phone, or to just not
respond.
Have a detailed signature line. By having all of your contact information
in the signature line every time you send, you will enable the proper
form of communication. As an example, someone may want to call you, but
not have your telephone number. So, they will respond to your e-mail instead.
A complete signature line will save others extra work.
Use voting buttons. If you need to ask several people a yes or no question,
use the voting buttons that are in your e-mail program. This program summarizes
the responses, and reduces the amount of time you need to spend coordinating
the information.
Make it a group standard to use the electronic calendar. When everyone
places all of their appointments in the electronic calendar, it makes
it very easy for people to schedule meetings. This avoids e-mails going
back and forth with questions such as, "are you available next Wednesday
at 2:00 p.m.?"
Avoid controversial or argumentative e-mailing. When you engage in an
emotional discussion via e-mail, the e-mails will fly. And, most likely,
they will get more heated. Emotional issues should be handled by a phone
call or, by a person to person meeting.
Create a company or group blog or chat room. When you are going to be
requesting feedback and opinions, a blog or a chat room is much more effective
at showing each person's feedback all in one place than trying to coordinate
opinion responses from multiple respondents.
While each one of these may save only a small amount of time, or may reduce
your e-mails only by a few, collectively, they have potential to help
you control the actual number you receive. E-mail is here to stay; the
sooner you develop productive habits regarding its use, the more time
you will have for what is really important in your life.
Marsha Egan, CPCU, PCC is CEO of The Egan Group, Inc.,
a Reading, PA based professional coaching firm. She is a certified executive
coach and professional speaker, specializing in leadership development and
can be reached at marsha@marshaegan.com or visit http://www.marshaegan.com
.
Source: http://www.submityourarticle.com
Permalink: http://www.submityourarticle.com/a.php?a=96121
Published - May 2010
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