Don’t Be an Email Spazz… 5 Easy Steps
by, Seema Roy
Email rules our life 
– it is a sad but serious acceptance. It’s a way to get in touch with people, share our feelings, and make plans. However, sometimes the quick-sending ability of an email has its own aches and pains … like that time you emailed your best friend about how much you hated your boss… then realized the “Send To” had your boss’s email address on it. Or how about that time that you hit “send” accidentally on an email to a client, and realized that you were sending one client’s info to another client. OOPS. Yah.
So, in order to avoid email-spazz outs, NEEM has a few simple guidelines that you should keep in mind:
(1) MANNERS my friends, manners. Do your best to start emails off with a semi-personal salutation and end with a polite sign off. Avoid words like “Hey” when writing to business associates (but that’s fine for friends!). For sign offs, the best ones are “Best,” “Sincere Regards,” or just simply “Regards.” Think about it rationally… when you see your friends on the street you don’t jump into the conversation without saying “hi.” MANNERS.
(2) Don’t leave the Subject line blank. The line is there and labeled for a reason! Try to give your messages a clear, easily understood subject that is short and concise. Something simple such as “Trip Itinerary to Italy” or “Agenda for Meeting Today” are good, while “Trip” or “Meeting Today at 5:00 find Agenda attached for reference and review” are BAD BAD uses of the “Subject” line.
(3) Make it pretty and sophisticated, yes pretty. You don’t walk around the office in ripped jeans, one black shoe and one red shoe, and a sweatshirt – so your emails shouldn’t bring that same odd image to mind either. Use the same FONT throughout your email, multiple fonts in business emails look unprofessional.
(4) Oh that number you want me to call? Tell me what it is! Make sure the information that the reader needs is THERE (ahem… people who say “fax that to me” without telling anyone what the fax number is – this is for YOU).
(5) Bad words…are well, let’s see, BAD. Emails get forwarded around, very very easily. The can be copied and pasted with a few clicks – and suddenly everyone in the work force, and beyond, in CHINA can read your ridiculous language. So if you have strong feelings about something, DO NOT use foul language or a condescending, rude, and evil-witch tone in order to get that across. Keep it to yourself for now, and then talk it out in person or on the phone. Written documents… they will somehow find a way to haunt you!
