The Potential

“An email can make or break a potential opportunity for you, so send and respond to them wisely.” (Leila Lewis)

 When you write well (as I believe I do), you forget at times that not everyone has the abilities that come to you so easily. A good friend of mine is not as blessed as I am in this area. He struggles constantly at work with putting together logical, well-written work e-mails.

He’s repeatedly asked me for assistance in becoming better at this skill. This post is for my anonymous comrade. Hopefully, the helps listed in this post can be of aid to him and all my blog readers that want to improve their work writing as soon as possible. Use…       Follow on Forbes·        Facebook·        Twitter·        LinkedIn·        RSS·        Amazon

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·        Jacob is an Author, speaker and futurist. His latest book, The Future of Work: Attract New Talent, Build Better Leaders, and Create a Competitive Organization, explores how the workplace is changing and was endorsed by business leaders such as the Chairman of KPMG, CEO of Whirlpool, CEO of Intuit, CEO of SAP, CEO of Schneider Electric, Gary Hamel, and many others. Jacob also co-founded the FOW Community which is a network of the world’s most forward thinking organizations who come together to explore the future of work. He frequently speaks at conferences and events all over the world and contributes to media publications such as Forbes, the WSJ, USA Today, INC Magazine, CNN, and many others. You can learn more about Jacob and get access to his blog, podcast, and video series by visiting TheFutureOrganization.com. You can also connect with Jacob on Twitter or email him, Jacob [at] TheFutureOrganization [dot] com.

·        The author is a Forbes contributor. The opinions expressed are those of the writer.

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·        A verbal reading of a work e-mail to avoid a possible negative tone to its language.

·        Classic fonts when composing work e-mails. (It is best to use ten or twelve point type and a font such as Arial, Calibri, or Times New Roman in the color black.) 

·        Straight forwarded, clear language upfront in your work e-mail so all those involved know your needs. 

·        Common sense in realizing that once your work e-mail is sent, it’s next to impossible to retrieve.

·        Complete words on work e-mail, and avoid word abbreviations in your text.

·        Discretion before hitting 'reply all.' on your work e-mail. (Do all parties involved really need to know every conversation in a business transaction?)

·        Exclamation points cautiously in work e-mail.

·        Humor cautiously in work e-mail.

·        One big (or important) idea per work e-mail.

·        Key words in the subject line of the work e-mail (for quick understanding by the recipient).

·        Multiple revisions (of grammar, or wordiness or misused words), if need so that your work e-mail has the best text possible for you. You can create your text on a Microsoft Word document (with all its features), and then transfer it to a work e-mail.

·        Proper formatting in your work e-mail so the reader will want to read the content.

·        Realistic expectations in not receiving rapid responses to your work e-mail.

·        Sensitivity with work e-mail as it carries emotional content.

·        Short work e-mails, and avoid forwarding long group conversations.

·        The most important points when replying to an earlier message.

·        The twenty-four hour rule when you’re upset before sending that work e-mail.

·        Use some of the most beautiful phrases on Earth in your work e-mail. They include: “No rush on this.” “This is for your information only. No action is necessary.” “No response required.”

·        Work e-mail as a means of work communication, and not the company therapist

·        Work e-mail carefully with people from different cultures, who might speak, write, and understand differently than you do.

·        Work e-mail wisely by remembering every electronic message leaves a trail that can be deciphered by a variety of people.

“Every day is an opportunity to have a fresh start. It doesn’t matter what happened yesterday. All that counts is today. When you wake up in the morning, know that today is full of opportunities waiting to be grabbed. It is a new day (a new start). The beginning of a new life awaits you.” (Unknown)[i]

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[i] Sources used:

·        “10 Ways to Write Better Emails (and Just Maybe Change the World)” by Alexandra Franzen

·        “12 Ways to Use Email Better” (http://projectmanagementhacks.com/12-ways-to-use-email-better)

·        “15 Email Etiquette Rules Every Professional Should Follow” by Jacquelyn Smith

·        “5 Ways Email Makes Your Employees Miserable” by Jacob Morgan

·         “7 Tips for Writing Killer Emails to Your Boss” by Herman Vantrappen

·        “8 Tips for Effective Email Communication” by Nancy Friedman