Page 176 - The Voice of Authority

“Welcome.”
So, when do you blink? What’s the fine line between an
exchange like the one above (that seems to suggest that you
have way too much time on your hands) and the situation
of not responding, implying that you’re bored and they are
beyond your point of interest?
Three quick tips to handle such a dilemma: (1) If the
message is positive, assume all is well. If the message con-
text is negative, spend the extra few seconds to reply and
spare an offense. (2) Reduce the length of your response.
A single word or phrase response implies “So long, I’m
signing off now.” (3) Repeat the action—yours or theirs.
You’re implying that one or the other of you should “jump
right on it” and have no further time to e-mail.

Know What Never to Put in an E-mail

Ask any 10 people if they know of someone who has been
terminated or an organization that has been hauled into
court over an e-mail, and at least one can cite person and
case. The story usually has an unhappy ending. Here are
the no-no’s:

1. Negative comments about executive management
(Even if “deleted,” these e-mails can be retrieved.
Often such remarks accidentally get passed on. Af-
ter four replies on an ongoing saga, someone for-
gets your sarcastic line buried at the bottom and ac-
cidentally forwards the e-mail to another colleague
to answer a different question.)
2. Criticism regarding peer or staff performance issues
(Written comments cause employees to brood.
They seem more official than spoken words.)

164 The Voice of Authority