When E-mail Goes Wrong
By ZARAH WALPOLE
As a writer and mediator, I spend a lot of time thinking
about how I, and my clients, can communicate in more effective
ways. A form of communication that is increasingly subject
to misuse is e-mail. E-mail is quick. It is efficient. It
allows me to conduct business from home and keep in touch
with friends and family from around the world. It saves
me a fortune in stamps and stationary and is making my fax
machine redundant. It has become an essential component
of my business and personal life. That being said, these
are my top reasons NOT to send e-mail.
Never send an e-mail you aren't comfortable making public
at some future date. E-mail can easily be forwarded to or
read by those you never intended. It can also be subpoenaed.
Don't make the mistake of thinking that once you have deleted
an e-mail it is gone forever. PCs and servers store backup
copies of e-mails in Deleted Items folders or on system
tapes.
Because e-mail is generally considered less formal than
snail mail, e-mail messages often contain grammatical and
spelling errors that leave an unprofessional impression.
My husband's most famous error occurred when he sent an
e-mail that was supposed to say "…will best serve
our business relationship". Instead he wrote "…will
best sever our business relationship." Oops. I cannot
stress enough that providing the wrong information or making
basic grammatical errors leaves a poor impression and will
affect your ability to negotiate a positive outcome.
E-mail messages lack the non-verbal information that we
constantly and unconsciously respond to when we speak, making
them subject to misinterpretation. Written communication
requires special care because it is long lived and can cause
greater harm because of its permanence. Yet many people
send e-mail with a speed and lack of thought that can cause
serious harm. It is generally not a good idea to share negative
emotions in an e-mail. People re-read negative e-mail, getting
angrier and angrier about what you thought was an emotionally
cool comment.
Remember that you do not always know how the recipient
of your e-mail is interpreting your message. For example,
a colleague sent me an e-mail message voicing a concern
about an office issue. I had the impression, based on the
tone of the e-mail, that he was extremely upset. I, in turn,
felt angry that he was blowing a simple issue out of proportion.
I considered replying by e-mail to let him know "in
no uncertain terms" that I was unimpressed with his
tone. I resisted the impulse and had a face to face chat
instead. A 5 minute conversation revealed that there was
no big issue and a simple solution resolved his concern.
These problems arise because people forget that sending
effective e-mail is a skill that requires honing. Although
e-mail is quick and informal it is not always the best way
to get your point across. Treat your e-mail messages with
the time and care they require and avoid many e-mail mishaps.
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The above is not intended to constitute
legal advice. Please contact a lawyer to clarify your
legal rights.
