Conscientious Communication & Email Etiquette

#CommunicationSkills get thrown around a lot in job applications, between employers who desire them, and the tenacious talent (like me!) that touts it on the resume. What do we mean specifically, though, when lumping together this often complex set of skills under one umbrella term? 

My personal interpretation, based on skills I have worked at honing in my professional experience across #manufacturing and myriad industries in #ClientServices & #RemoteWorking, includes considerations of:

• Appropriate Channels: e.g., message v. email v. meeting)

• Messaging Etiquette: subject line & thread hygiene, CC/BCC use

• Prioritization: urgent v. important

• Sensitivity to Context/Personality: e.g., internal/external, differing communication styles

📧 Let’s Talk About Email Etiquette:

• Beyond the basics of using succinct and respectful language, it’s important to keep subject lines relevant and action-focused so recipients may quickly identify whether an email is topical in their workflow, or requires action/attention.
  

• Additionally, I consider it a gift to keep communications well organized by following up and closing loops within the originating thread whenever possible. This keeps the relevant context in one place for clarity, and ease of sharing or record-keeping as needed
  

• Adjusting distribution lists and CC/BCC attention appropriately helps maintain relevant audiences (internal & external alike). It sets a precedence for colleagues to associate messages from this sender (me) with important information, rather than spam-like messages, or low-priority tasking. 
  

• Calling out the requested action and deadline (esp. with bold/underlined/highlighted text) is crucial across communication styles. Otherwise, these details may get skipped or lost in translation.
  

• Pro-communicators consider the recipients’ personality style and communication preferences when selecting message format and language. For example, pros may intuit when to use openers like, “How was your weekend?” for a warm connection, and when a direct request or bullet list is more appropriate.

  • P.S. If you're not using a tool like Grammarly yet, do yourself a favor

• Last (for now), but not least, I think it’s important to know when a fresh email is short enough to warrant a quick chat message, sparing the inbox, or when the contents are getting long enough to warrant a meeting or in-person discussion in its place.

💌 When in doubt, I ask myself two questions: 

1. Have I made this information easy to receive? 

2. Is this content/format respectful of the recipient’s time & priorities?

#ProfessionalCommunication #EmailEtiquette #RemoteWorking #ClearIsKind