DO YOU MAKE THESE EMAIL MISTAKES? (February 19, 2020)

Face to face communication allows us to fill in the blanks about the other person’s intention, tone and message — gestures, facial expressions, verbal tone — but in the modern workplace, email has become the de facto mode of communication. Getting it wrong — most of us do — can be costly.

Productivity, relationships, sales and successful outcomes to projects are easily jeopardised when somebody interprets an email negatively. The bad news is that email don’t let us fill in the blanks. It’s left to our imaginations and, as psychologists will tell you, we default to the negative interpretation almost every single time.

“We rarely fill in the blanks with positive intentions. This can lead to misunderstandings, damaged relationships, and poor business decisions,” says threat management expert David F. Swink.

“Given that many of us must communicate via email and text, we should be aware of the fact that emails can have a ‘tone’. People will remember the emotional tone of an email more vividly and longer than the content.”

Swink says that while you may be relaxed and at ease, the other person may be stressed or upset by something that is going on in their day. In a face-to-face meeting, you will most often recognise the problem and communicate accordingly. In an email, there is no such luxury.

“Compose your email recognising that the receiver may not be in the same mood or emotional state as you. Try to imagine how the person receiving the email could interpret it.”

Swink offers the following tips on how to clean up your emails:

1. Assess your relationship with the receiver. Adjust your level of writing formality to match the relationship.
2. Email is more than just the transmission of information. It is about managing a relationship remotely. Consider leading with a social comment like you would if you were talking face to face. For example, “I hope you enjoyed the long weekend,” or “I’m looking forward to working with you on this project”.
3. If you think there is room for misinterpretation of your message, take the time to craft the email to make sure your message is more likely to be received with your true intention. This might make the email longer.
4. Do not use text speak like ‘lol’ or ‘BTW’ unless you know the person really well. The same goes for using emoticons.
5. Be careful with cc’s and bcc’s, as different interpretations can be made about what copying people on the email implies. Realise that a person who is blind copied may reply, forgetting that they were a blind copy.
6. Most people know by now that typing in ALL CAPS is the same as screaming at someone.
7. Don’t overuse punctuation!!!!
8. If you are not sure about the tone of an email you are sending, have someone else read it and give you feedback before you send it. If no one else is available for a tone check, park the email in your draft folder and come back and re-read it a couple of hours later before sending it.
9. Most importantly, know when to pick up the phone or meet face-to-face to discuss an issue.