emails

Wasting Time

By in Communication, University Culture 3 Comments Tags: , ,

WastingTime

What do you do when you’re at work? I’m sure you spend time completing your assigned tasks and responsibilities. But I bet that you also spend a lot of time on one or both of these activities:

  • Attending meetings
  • Sending and responding to emails

Now certainly, it’s important to hold meetings and email people sometimes. Good communication is essential to any well-run organization! But organizations can also go overboard on these activities. And that’s when they turn into a huge waste of time.

According to a recent Wall Street Journal article, it’s not unusual for people to spend hours each week attending meetings that they don’t really need to attend, and reading and answering unnecessary emails. This drastically cuts down on the amount of time that people have to do actual work.

So what are the biggest time-wasting mistakes that organizations make? Here’s a list of the worst offenses:

Meetings

  1. Inviting too many people to meetings
  2. Holding meetings that are more than 90 minutes long (since people are often less able to focus and make good decisions after 90 minutes)
  3. Having a vague agenda (or no agenda at all), which is frustrating and often causes people to go off on time-wasting tangents

Emails

  1. CC-ing a bunch of people on emails when those people don’t really need to see those emails
  2. Using a vague subject line (like “Planning Meeting”) that confuses people
  3. Sending an item to be reviewed to too many people (since this can result in overwhelming amounts of feedback that can be both confusing and contradictory)
  4. Including unclear instructions in the email that leave people feeling unsure about exactly what they’re supposed to do, or how they’re supposed to respond

Can you think of any other time-wasting mistakes? Please feel free to share them in the Comments section below. Identifying time-wasting mistakes is the only way to avoid making them!

 

Shellenbarger, S. (2014, December 3). Stop wasting everyone’s time. The Wall Street Journal, pp. D1, D3.

How to End Your Emails

By in Communication No Comments Tags: ,

Writing_an_Email

You probably send a lot of emails over the course of your workday. And you probably have a standard “closer” – the word or phrase that you include at the end of the email, right before your name. It might be something like “best” or “thanks” or “sincerely.”

My standard closer is “thanks” or “thanks very much.” It just seems friendly and polite to me. To be honest, I’ve never really given it much thought. But according to author Monica Torres, I should give it some thought. Apparently, email closers have more of an impact than one might think (and “thanks” might actually have negative connotations).

Here’s a list of common work email closers, and Torres’s assessment of each:

  • Best – This is always a safe bet. If you’re not sure how to end your email, go with “Best” or “Best wishes.” It’s kind of bland, but it’s also pleasant and professional. You definitely won’t offend anyone with this closer. It’s an especially good choice if you’re emailing someone you don’t know.
  • Sincerely – This is very formal. It’s a good choice if you’re applying for a job. But it can be a little off-putting if you’re emailing someone you know, like a coworker. And if you’ve always used more informal closers with someone (like “Best”) and then you suddenly switch to “Sincerely,” this could send a very negative message. The person might wonder why you’re suddenly being so cold, and what he or she might have done to anger you. So in the right situation, “Sincerely” can be perfectly appropriate, but use it with caution.
  • Thanks – If you really need to get a response to your email, end it with “Thanks” or “Thanks very much.” One study found that people are more likely to respond to emails that end with this closer. But be careful! If you ask someone for a favor, and then end your email with “Thanks” or “Thanks in advance,” you run the risk of coming across as coercive and presumptuous.  
  • Cheers – Closers like “Cheers” or “Warmly” are great if you’re emailing family or close friends. But they’re generally too informal for work emails. So you should probably save them for your personal emails and choose a different option when you’re corresponding with coworkers.

…

Torres, M. (2019, April 1). This is the best way to end a work email, according to etiquette experts. HuffPost. Retrieved from: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/work-email-closing-thanks-best-sincerely_l_5c9cdfe1e4b07c8866324ebd

How to Respond to Confusing Emails

By in Communication No Comments Tags: , ,

ConfusingEmail

I’m sure you’ve received plenty of confusing emails over the years. They’re often long and vague, and leave you wondering what the person is asking you to do.

Trying to decode these types of emails can take a lot of your time. And even if you give it your best effort, you still might get it wrong. So instead of trying to make sense of a confusing email, author Alex Cavoulacos suggests that it’s better to ask for clarification. The way in which you ask for clarification depends on the type of email that you receive:

  • Rambling and unclear – If you get a lengthy email that contains a lot of confusing bits of information, and even after reading it several times, you still have no idea what the person would like you to do, you need to kindly ask for clarification. Send a response that says something like this… “Thanks for sharing this information. It’s a lot to consider! In order for me to assist you as quickly as possible, could you tell me specifically what I can do to help?”   
  • Not enough information – If you get an email in which someone asks you to provide your opinion or make a decision, but doesn’t provide you with the background information or resources that you need, don’t waste a lot of time trying to track these things down yourself. Instead, send a response like this… “Thanks for your email! Could you please send me the [documents/background information] regarding this issue? I’ll take action after I’ve reviewed them.”
  • Too many requests (from your boss) – If your boss sends you a huge, crazy “to-do” list that’s more than you can manage, you should address this issue in your response. Try to get your boss to prioritize the list by saying something like this… “Thanks for your email. I can get started on these tasks as soon as I’m done with [other project I’m currently working on]. But I’d be more effective if I knew which items I should tackle first. Could you possibly help me to prioritize these tasks?”  
  • Too many requests (from a coworker) – If a coworker (who really shouldn’t be assigning you work) sends you a huge, crazy “to-do” list, you should respond like this… “Thanks for your email. Before I begin any of this work, I’ll have to get approval from my boss. Could you possibly tell me which of these tasks are the most important? And are there any tasks on this list that could be cut or postponed? This information will be really helpful when I talk to my boss about how much time it will take me to get these tasks done.”
  • A plea from a virtual stranger – If someone from another department whom you barely know emails you with a rambling, confusing plea for help with various tasks, you shouldn’t just ignore it, even if you’re really busy with your own work. Be kind and responsive, and say something like this… “Hi. It’s nice to meet you! My schedule is really full right now, but I could help you out with one of the items on your list – possibly by referring you to someone who is more experienced in this area. Which one of the tasks that you listed is the most important?”

…

Cavoulacos, A. (n.d.). The 4 most ridiculous emails in your inbox – and how to answer them. The Muse. Retrieved from: https://www.themuse.com/advice/the-4-most-ridiculous-emails-in-your-inboxand-how-to-answer-them

Unsubscribe!

By in Living Well, Technology No Comments Tags: , ,

TooManyEmails

I must admit that I have felt rather overwhelmed recently. On Sunday, I decided that my email was simply demanding too much attention!

It seemed as if I was receiving alerts every five minutes. Some were interesting offers. There were low air fares, discounts at stores, menus from restaurants, and so on. There were also newsletters from professional organizations. Many were simply advertisements from people offering professional products and services. Most were somewhat interesting, but they simply seemed to take up too much of my time.

The other problem was distraction. I somehow feel the urge to see what an email is about as soon as it arrives. Even if I’m absorbed in a task, I will open an email. Then it takes a few minutes to start focusing again on the more important task. Thus, an email that should take 30 seconds to read consumes about 10 minutes of otherwise productive time.

So I spent most of Sunday morning removing my name from mailing lists. I also turned off notifications from social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Almost immediately, it seemed as if the flood of communications had become more manageable. I suddenly felt less distracted, more able to focus, and, yes, happier.

Why not try it? The feeling of liberation that comes from removing yourself from these lists is actually wonderful!

 

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