Inc Magazine
Email Disasters
Mark Adamson

Email has established itself as the main form of business communication. It is fast becoming the preferred method worldwide. People get fired, hired, and promoted because of their ability with this method. Encountering email disasters is fast becoming a concern. Consider the following strategies to protect yourself against these possible disasters.

Ways to avoid Email disasters.

Proof read before sending.
Have you ever received an email from someone which was a grammatical disaster? What was your reaction? Did you think they were sloppy or incompetent? Either way, your reaction is negative. Remember to check your email by reading over it at least once. We often send an email without checking.

Watch who you are sending your email to.
Do you receive email that doesn’t concern you? What is your reaction to these situations? Do not overload your teams with unnecessary communication. Be careful of your email recipients. Sometimes we send an email replying to all when we really only want to respond to the person who has sent the email, or vice versa. We think we have sent an email to one person and we realize it has gone out to the entire company.

Do you use priority alert?
Do you get too much email signaled with a priority status? Do you think it is usually not important? What kind of an impression does all of this leave with your colleagues? When you send email that is marked important, make sure it is.

Be careful about viruses. You could be liable.
Getting a virus from a client or worse sending one to a client can indicate incompetence to the person who is receiving it. It can also mean that you can be responsible for any shutdown of the computer system. Make sure you have proper virus protection.

Stay professional.
Getting an inappropriate email from a colleague can be the beginning of the end of a professional relationship. Remember that once the email is out and your name is on it, you’re responsible. It is best to stay away from these situations.

Choose you words carefully.
When writing, as when you handwrite, choose your language carefully. It is easy to use aggressive language. As mentioned above these emails have your name on them and are easy to circulate.

Email can be considered one of the most sophisticated forms of communication. In professional circumstances you use it to get ideas across. You have time to think the message over before sending it.
More and more email is becoming the main means of communicating. Consider the following when using it.

Mark Adamson
Inc Magazine