Solution to a common e-mail problem
September 21, 2009 by Sam NarisiPosted in: Communication, HR Tech, In this week's e-newsletter - Tech, Latest News & Views
We’ve all made this mistake: hitting Reply All button when meaning to respond only to the original e-mail’s sender. Not only is it annoying, but it could leak information to the wrong people.
But there is a solution that can help. In most e-mail programs, the Reply and Reply All buttons are right next to each other. They also look alike, so they’re often mistaken for one another.
What to do: Most e-mail programs also let you customize your toolbar so you can rearrange or even remove certain buttons.
For example, in Microsoft Outlook 2007:
- Click on the “Tools” menu at the top and select “Customize…” from the drop-down list
- Select the “Commands” tab and click the button that says “Rearrange commands”
- In the new window that appears, click the button next to “Toolbar”
- Find “Reply to All” in the list underneath and use the “Move Up” and “Move Down” commands to change its position. Or click “Delete” to remove the button from the toolbar altogether.
If the button is removed, you can still reply to everyone by finding “Reply to All” in the “Actions” menu.
September 22nd, 2009 at 2:59 pm
Always do the following before clicking send on ANY e-mail:
1. Spell Check. Most e-mail programs today have built-in spell check. SPELL CHECK. Making a simple spelling error makes you look stupid. Outlook can be configured to spell check automatically under advanced options.
2. Proof Read. Read what you are about to send, making sure you said what you INTENDED to say. Look for areas of your e-mail that could be misinterpreted. “One-liners” should get a “once-over”, but longer e-mails should be read 2 to 3 times to make sure you’re not making an a$$ out of yourself.
3. Attach files. How many times have you fired off an e-mail without attachments? It happens to all of us. Sending it to your boss’s boss can make you look incompetent.
4. Attach THE RIGHT files. See #2 — Don’t send “Customer A” a document for “Customer B” or vice-versa. Don’t send employee reviews to the wrong employee.
5. Review the thread. In long-threaded e-mails, sometimes there can be something buried two or three replies ago, that could be derogatory or condescending, or something brief that could be misinterpreted as harsh. Best policy: Trim off what is not needed. In long-threaded e-mails, scan for areas where people are mentioned by name, or deficiencies are called out by name or instance.
6. Check your signature. If you use an automated signature, make sure the job title, company, and contact information are correct, and that you are using the correct formality – informal for “one-liners” and to those that know you, and formal for those that don’t know you or don’t interact with you frequently. Don’t send “one-liners” to people who don’t know you.
DO THESE THINGS EVERY TIME YOU SEND AN E-MAIL.
Do not send in haste…. take a few seconds to review your thoughts before you send them out. Eventually, taking a quick second look becomes a good habit, and takes little time or effort.