Electronic
• Hit Send and it’s gone
• Hit Reply All and your career
may be gone
• Deleted emails live on
• Messages can be forwarded
without your knowledge or consent
Tip: Electronic
• Colonel David Russell’s rule:
Never say anything in an electronic message
that you wouldn't want appearing, and
attributed to you, in tomorrow morning’s
front-page headline in the New York Times.
More Tips: Subject
Double-check the address line before sending.
Insulted by a general email from the boss,
an employee sent an angry comment to a
colleague (she thought): “Does she think
we’re stupid?”
 The reply (from her boss): “Yes, I do.”
Body
 Write so emails are easy to read
 Make paragraphs 7-8 lines
 Insert a blank line between paragraphs
 Use headlines, bullets, and numbers
 AVOID ALL CAPS; THAT’S SHOUTING
 If a message is longer than 3 screens,
send an attachment
Tip: What not to do
• One of the officers convicted of beating
Rodney King sent this email:
Oops. I haven’t beaten anyone
so bad in a long time.
A transcript of the message was used
at his trial.
Anatomy of an email: Body
 Before you hit Send, review and delete






Negative comments about management
Criticisms of staff or performance issues
Bonuses or salary issues
Product or liability issues
Gossip
Humor or other ambiguities
Booher
Tip: Email is never private
• Pillsbury assured employees that emails
were private.
• Michael Smyth was fired after sending an email
calling his bosses “backstabbing bastards.”
• A court held that he had no reasonable expectation
of privacy.
To:
From:
Re:
Date:
Female employees
H. Honcho
Dress code
1 July 2006
Clients will be visiting next
week. Halter tops and jeans
will not make the right
impression. It’s time you
started dressing for the
office instead of the beach.
Leave your flip-flops at
home!
To:
All staff
From: H. Honcho
Re:
Reminder about what to
wear to work
Date: 1 July 2006
During the summer, our dress
code is business casual. We
think “business casual” means
clothes that feel comfortable
and look professional.
Men
•khaki pants
Women
•casual pants
and skirts
•leather shoes… •leather or
fabric shoes…
Tips: Tone
 Avoid terseness, which can be
misinterpreted
 Use face-to-face
communication if issue is
sensitive
 Read your emails aloud,
looking for ambiguity
Humor: Often misinterpreted

Participants [in recent studies] were able to
accurately communicate humor and sarcasm
in barely half -56 percent -- of the emails they sent.
Louise Dobson (2006)
Humor: Riskier

Nearly a quarter of employees have suffered
problems with colleagues or clients because their
use of humour in an email has not been understood
or appreciated, according to a survey.
Robert Jacques, “Email Jokes Backfire
for UK Workers” (2004)
Tips: Humor
 If in doubt, don’t send it.
Chevron was forced to pay $2.2 million
to settle a harassment case based in part
on emails with such subjects as “Why beer
is better than women.”
 Reread for ambiguities.
 Signal the joke.
One emoticon or <grin> per email is plenty.
Subject: Funded speaking engagement at Optimum University
Message:
Dear Dr. Smith,
My name is Dan Craig and I am the office manager for the Department of Biology at Optimum University. I
am contacting you at the request of Dr. Brown, the chair of the Department of Biology to arrange for a
speaking engagement at our university.
We bring in some of the best minds in the field of Biology each year to speak to our graduating seniors.
This year we hope that you will be able to join us.
The session will take place in the afternoon on Friday, May 10. If you are interested please let me know at
your earliest convenience. We can further discuss funding, travel arrangements, and other specifics at
that time.
Sincerely,
Dan
Daniel Craig
Office Manager
Department of Biology
Optimum University
3423 Ninth St.
Glen Falls, NY 00232
Office: 321-243-5343
Fax: 321-233-2564
dcraig@optimum.edu
Replying Example
Subject: RE: Your February conference presentation
Message:
Hi Dan,
I’m glad to hear that you enjoyed the presentation. I am happy to provide you with a copy of my presentation. Please see the attached
PowerPoint document.
Other people working in this same area are John Smith at Johns Hopkins and Paula Brewer at the University of Minnesota. I suggest starting
with Smith’s, “What you can’t see can hurt you” in the journal Nature (April, 2005).
If you have any questions, let me know.
Sincerely,
Taejin
Taejin Park, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Biology
Sears University
Biology Bldg
6666 Eastern Ave.
Robuck, AZ. 32232
Phone: 416-555-7543
Cell: 416-555-8245
Fax: 416-555-2456
Email: tjpark@sears.edu
Web: http://www.sears.edu/~tjpark
Direct vs. Indirect
Direct
Mr. Smith,
Send me all the information you have on patient 10000453.
Roger Barnes, M.D.
Chief Resident
Illinios Public Hospitals
Suite 500
666 Wish St.
Chicago, IL 60062
Office: 312-555-5555
Fax: 312-555-5556
rbarnes@ilpubhosp.com
Indirect
Dear Mr. Smith,
Could you send me all the information that you have on patient 10000453?
I need his files in order to carry out a consultation with him later this week.
Thank you very much.
Roger
Roger Barnes, M.D.
Chief Resident
Illinios Public Hospitals
Suite 500
666 Wish St.
Chicago, IL 60062
Office: 312-555-5555
Fax: 312-555-5556
rbarnes@ilpubhosp.com
Requesting Information Example
Subject: Your February conference presentation
Message:
Dear Dr. Park
My name is Daniel Morgan and I am an Associate Professor at Cobalt University. I attended your presentation, “Microbiology in the modern hospital” at the
International Association of Physicians conference in February and I am very interested in your ideas.
Would it be possible for you to send me a copy of your presentation for me to show to me colleagues here at Cobalt University? Also, could you suggest some
other authors writing on this topic?
You can email me at this address (dmorgan@cobalt.edu) or you may call me at my office (213-555-5566).
Thank you very much for your time and I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Dan
Daniel Morgan, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Physical Sciences
Cobalt University
Administrative Bldg
3000 West St.
Quincy, CA. 90033
Phone: 213-555-5566
Cell: 213-555-5443
Fax: 213-555-5556
Email: dmorgan@cobalt.edu
Web: http://www.cobalt.edu/~dmorgan
Tip: Spelling still counts
• Sloppiness is one of “seven deadly e-mail sins”
• Bad grammar, misspelling and disconnected
arguments gave 81 percent of the survey sample
"negative feelings" towards the senders.
• 41 percent of senior managers said badly worded emails implied laziness and even disrespect.
CNN.com
The simple answer is it is “definite” + “ly”.
Although people invent many spellings, there is one definite spelling. Remember
“definite” and add “ly” to change the word into an adverb. But don’t remove any letters
or edit the spelling. “DEFINITE” + “LY”
A finite list of one correct spelling. “DE” + “FINITE” + “LY”
Confused?
Try using a different verb in place of affect. If the sentence still makes sense, it’s
correct.
Another easy trick is to remember that "a" comes before "e" in the alphabet, and, at
least in the case of affect the verb and effect the noun, you must affect something first
to achieve an effect.
Please remembering that lose is a verb: you lost the prize. Loose is an adjective: her pants were very loose.
Know when to use each word, according to their definition.
Correct: "I always lose my cell phone." -- a lost phone.
Incorrect: "I always loose my cell phone." -- a loosened phone(?).
When you are close to defeat in a competition, use "lose".
Correct: "I think Bob is about to lose the race." -- a lost race.
Incorrect: "I think Bob is about to loose the race." -- a loosened race(?).
When an object has free movement and is not restricted by restraints, use "loose".
Correct: "Mary likes her hair loose and not in a ponytail." -- loosened hair.
Incorrect: "Mary likes her hair lose and not in a ponytail." -- lost hair(?).
Their cow runs so much
faster than mine!
They’re excellent
ranchers and farmers.
The finish line is way
over there!
There are so many reason to
compete in cow races.
First we went to the
restaurant then we
went to movies.
A sequence of actions
indicates time.
The food was much
better than the last
time we went.
Use the word than when
drawing a comparison.
I believe you dropped
your wallet.
I don’t believe you’re
capable of stealing.
I believe the weather station
predicted heavy fog this
morning
I wonder whether or not I
have a choice.