7 Email Myths That Plague the Workplace
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Myths about how to best practise e-mail abound. Some are explicitly stated and drummed into your head, and some are the unspoken expectations of the modernistic corporate world. To succeed at tackling the big email fourth dimension sink and making email woes a affair of your past, you need to acknowledge these myths for what they are, and implement a arrangement that works.
Systems need skilful foundations in order to work, and when an effective email management organization fails, information technology'due south usually because the user couldn't separate these myths from their approach.
1. Good system is the best way to stay on top of electronic mail.
It'south non. Turning emails into actions and archiving everything else is the best way to stay on top of email. Organizing each bulletin into a different binder might be handy for other reasons, such as excavation out a paper trail for your lawyer when you get sued, but it's not handy for "staying on acme of" email. In that location is no correlation between the folder your message is in (unless we're talking about the inbox) and your level of email efficiency.
2. You need to reply to every bulletin.
Some letters only don't need a reply. You should only reply if you have something valuable to add to the communication. Sure, you might feel the sting of guilt as yous get used to this concept and stop replying to every message yous get, merely if you lot desire to reclaim your time, it's an adjustment you must make.
If in that location are people you communicate with regularly who expect a reply fifty-fifty when you accept nothing to add, you need to educate them rather than succumb to their demands. The biggest problem with email productivity is that people simply won't put upwards a piddling resistance to those who don't know how to use email finer.
three. You lot demand to answer to every message… every bit before long as you receive information technology.
Worse than myth number ii is the myth that you lot should respond to every message the second you become it. Zero is achieved by this. In that location are always exceptions to every rule—if yous work in a newsroom, waiting an hour for data is like waiting a calendar week—but they probably don't apply to yous. Don't find excuses to answer to every message every minute of the day; just say no.
Replying to every message you lot receive is a fourth dimension sink. Replying to every message as before long equally you lot receive it is sheer irresponsibility—ironically, many people do this to create the illusion of productivity and responsibility.
4. Emails should exist about (insert number) words.
The appropriate length for an email is dependent on what the email is nearly and how much the recipient already knows about the topic, and how much they need to know virtually the topic in lodge to act on it. If information technology doesn't demand to be more than a judgement, never make it more than a judgement. If the email is incomplete in 3 or 4 paragraphs, keep writing until the email is consummate, simply make every discussion count and edit like crazy before you striking transport.
Part of maintaining good email productivity is maintaining good email etiquette; you could telephone call information technology the "email karma" dominion.
5. Email is a animal that can't be tamed.
Sure it tin can be. The engineering is never the problem; the people using it are. The question is: are you lot the trouble person, or is it the people sending y'all e-mail? Either way, there are solutions you tin can implement, whether they involve changing the mode you think about and use email or putting up obstacles betwixt yourself and your contacts. Auto responders are i such obstruction that will brainwash those who are sending y'all unhelpful email.
6. At that place's no manner to get off that pesky mailing listing!
Of course in that location is; it's just a thing of how far yous're willing to take the affair. Spam is illegal, remember, and if it's truly a mailing list and not merely spam from Russia, in that location'south a style to become your proper name removed (even if you take to scare the bejeezus out of them with lawyers). It may just take some time and free energy. If it'south going to take y'all more than 2 minutes, you should simply ready a filter and so that you never see messages from that accost. If you're looking for more time in your mean solar day, why accept the difficult route?
7. Prioritization is a good email productivity tool.
Prioritization is a good task management tool. If y'all experience like attaching a priority to an electronic mail y'all've received, it'due south a practiced sign that you need to turn that bulletin into an action. On the flip side, sending an email marked equally high priority using the prioritization features of your email customer has an equally dubious level of usefulness. Non only is there a proficient risk that the priority level won't exist displayed in the recipient's e-mail client, information technology's a matter of adept email etiquette to go out the priority of a given email upward to the recipient and let them fit it into the context of their solar day.
Email was never designed to help you communicate during an emergency. If in that location'southward an emergency that truly does require immediate attention, option up the phone or Skype.
Source: https://www.lifehack.org/articles/featured/7-email-myths-that-plague-the-workplace.html
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