About ten months ago, I left office life and started working from home. And since then, I've been living dream: answering work emails without pants.
Since I’ve stared working from home, I've also become a lot more reliant on email. You see, walking over to someone’s desk is no longer an option for me, so about 90% of my daily interactions take place online.
Since I’ve stared working from home, I've also become a lot more reliant on email. You see, walking over to someone’s desk is no longer an option for me, so about 90% of my daily interactions take place online.
That said, when it comes to the art of email, I've become a Van Gogh of Outlook.
It wasn't always this way though; at one point, I was more at the finger painting level of things. But like all great artists, I learned.
And today, I’m sharing four tips I've learned that have helped me make sure my emails are as effective as possible, and which I hope will help you polish your own online communication.
Use active voice.
Here’s a test: which sentence do you think is easier to understand?
a) The blog post was written by the wordsmith.
b) The wordsmith wrote the blog post.
Or how about here:
a) Eyes were rolled by the unamused blog readers.
b) The unamused blog readers rolled their eyes.
If you’re like me, option b (the active voice) is a lot easier on the brain. My readers' brains are important to me, so whenever possible, I use the active voice. While this tip has helped me in all of my writing, it is especially helpful when emailing, when clarity is key.
a) The blog post was written by the wordsmith.
b) The wordsmith wrote the blog post.
Or how about here:
a) Eyes were rolled by the unamused blog readers.
b) The unamused blog readers rolled their eyes.
If you’re like me, option b (the active voice) is a lot easier on the brain. My readers' brains are important to me, so whenever possible, I use the active voice. While this tip has helped me in all of my writing, it is especially helpful when emailing, when clarity is key.
Put down the thesaurus.
Working under my general assumption that everyone knows and loves the show Friends, I’m sure you remember the episode when Joey writes Chandler and Monica a reference letter. In that episode, Joey uses a thesaurus to come up with sentences like: “They are humid prepossessing Homo Sapiens with full sized aortic pumps.” (In normal speak: "They're warm, nice people with big hearts.")
When writing an email, clarity is almost always more important than impressive language. In other words, it’s fine to use words like “use” and “said” in your email instead of their fancy cousins, “utilize” and “articulate.” Basically, don’t be a word slob, but also don’t be a Joey.
Don’t be a word slob,
but also don’t be a Joey.
Two is better than one (sentences, that is).
Once, after a long day, I received an email with a sentence that had many different points, from a person who had many different thoughts and a particular fondness for commas, which he used without hesitation to come up with the longest sentence I ever read, thereby forcing me to reread the email with my very tired eyes at least five times, much to my dismay.
Don’t get me wrong—I love a well-crafted sentence. But like point #2, email is all about clarity. One sentence may be more impressive, but two is a lot easier to read.
Be obvious.
People are busy, and busy people generally don’t like reading a lot of words—which means a lot of times, people are just skimming your email instead of reading the whole thing. So whenever possible, I make my point within the first sentence or two of my email. And if I can’t, or if there are multiple important points, I make sure that each important item jumps out at the reader. (Bolding things is my friend.)
And as an extra special added bonus, here is a fifth point: Stop apologizing. I could write a whole blog post about this one but that, my friends, is for another time.
Do you have any tips to add to this list? Do you like online communication, or do you prefer face-to-face?
