When we have face-to-face discussions, we use the other person’s body language, vocal tone, and facial expressions to assess how the message has been received. In an e-mail, tone comes from the words used, sentence structure, punctuation, and capitalization. Unintentionally, you could come across as condescending, arrogant, threatening, or rude.
It is not recommended to use e-mail communication to address workplace conflicts/issues.
Guidelines for respectful email communication:
- Before writing an e-mail, ask yourself if it is the best way to convey the message. Do not use e-mail to communicate if:
- Back and forth discussion is needed.
- It involves sensitive and confidential information.
- You are delivering unwelcome news.
- Your message is emotionally charged, or the tone could be easily misconstrued.
- Do not send an e-mail when you are angry as this will impact the tone of your message.
- It is good practice to include a polite opening and closing.
- Remember to be polite when making requests, include “Please” and “Thank you.” Most people appreciate a compliment and like to be thanked.
- Be careful with the use of capitalization and excessive use of underlining, bold, italics, and exclamation marks. For instance, writing with all capital letters can be interpreted as yelling.
- Know your audience. Adjust the level of formality based on the relationship you have with the receiver.
- Sarcasm and jokes are dangerous. If something “gets lost in the translation,” you risk offending or upsetting the reader.
- Practice empathy. When drafting e-mails, think about your words from the reader’s perspective. Ask yourself:
- How would I interpret this sentence as someone reading it?
- How would this make me feel if I received it?
- Think twice before hitting “reply all.” Ask yourself “why does everyone need to read my reply?”
- Only copy (cc) your e-mail to the people that are involved in the issue at hand or who need to be kept informed of the status of an issue.
- Use blind copy (bcc) sparingly. A good practice is to use it when you are sending the message to a large group of people. When using bcc, it is also helpful to include a heading that provides the reader with an indication of who is receiving the message. For example: “To all faculty and staff.”
- Before sending the e-mail, think about how it “feels” emotionally. If you think that your intentions could be misunderstood, find a different method of communication.
- Remember, if you would not say something to a person’s face, do not say it in an email.