Slate Magazine’s Post

Ever been buried under an avalanche of "Reply All" emails, or received a novella-length message that could have been a single bullet point? Bad email etiquette isn't just annoying—it can wreck team morale and productivity faster than a broken coffee machine ☕️. Here's how to avoid becoming the office email villain: 1. Mind Your Tone: Not too formal, not too casual. Think Goldilocks—find that just-right balance to keep it professional yet friendly. 2. Beware the "Reply All": Not everyone needs to know you’ll “circle back on that.” Use it sparingly, and only when necessary. 3. Keep It Short and Sweet: Your colleagues don’t have time to read a novel. Be concise. Bullet points are your friend! 4. Prompt Responses: Ignoring emails is a fast track to becoming unpopular. Acknowledge receipt even if you can’t provide a full response immediately. 5. Clear Subject Lines: "Update" is about as helpful as a screen door on a submarine. Be specific! 6. Proofread: Typos make you look sloppy. Take a minute to double-check before hitting send. 7. Avoid the Pass-Agg CC: CC'ing the boss to make a point? Everyone sees it. Everyone knows what you’re doing . If you have an issue, pick up the phone. 📞 By following these simple tips, you'll ensure your emails are clear, professional, and won't make your coworkers want to throw their laptops out the window 💻🚪. #EmailEtiquette #WorkplaceTips #Teamwork #ProductivityHacks #OfficeLife

I see a growing trend of email signatures like the one below. While the intention here may be noble, it's self serving. "I'm emailing you because it's convenient for me, if you respond it's on you" You’ve already read the whole email by the time you’ve seen that signature. A better way would be to use ⭐ schedule send ⭐️ This would allow people to read the email on their own schedule, eliminate noise outside of operational hours, and provide time for additions or modifications. A win win, you can even mix things up with timings, to ensure they don't get flooded with emails all being sent at 9am on Monday morning. ✉️ Let’s do better when it comes to email and work/life balance ✉️ #WorkLifeBalance #EmailProductivity #DigitalWellbeing

Jeff's Short (not quite a blog 👨🚀): In last week’s blog, I referred to emails (Buy Back Your Time) and today’s digital etiquette. This week I thought I’d follow up on a pet peeve of mine that addresses both. In fact, let’s dig into a few things around email. Although efficient, it’s not supposed to be an instant messenger. If you need something fast, a quick call is good. Today, most people prefer text. Sometimes I do my best thinking on the weekends or at night. I put my thoughts in writing and send off an email before I forget. According to digital etiquette experts, in order to respect people’s work-life balance, you should write the email, save the draft, and schedule it to be delivered on the next workday morning. I’ll try. 🙂 That leads to my biggest pet peeve with email––Reply All. Mass emails make sense when you need to get information out to a group, but what happens after is a huge time suck. Does everyone on the chain need to see every reply? 😳 Replies can go on and on and on and on and recipients are left sorting through it all. People need to stop and judge whether their response is meant for everyone or just the sender. Please! Same could be said for group text, but that’s a short for another day. 🙂 #CEGspaces #CommercialRealEstate #Broker #SDVOSB #veteranowned #WeKnowSpace #commercialproperty #BNI #AbsoluteConnections #emailetiquette #email #buybackyourtime

The 2-Minute Email Rule That Saved My Sanity . . . Last year, my inbox had 3,457 unread emails. Yes, I counted. Yes, it was overwhelming. Yes, I felt like a failure every time I opened my laptop. Today? Zero unread emails. (And no, I didn't just mass-delete everything 😅) The game-changer? The 2-Minute Rule. Here's how it works: When you open an email, ask ONE question: "Can I handle this in 2 minutes or less?" If YES → Do it immediately If NO → Move it to a designated time block That's it. That's the rule. But here's what happens when you actually follow it: BEFORE: Opening emails multiple times Decision fatigue from constant prioritizing Mental load of remembering "I need to reply to that" Late-night panic responses Weekend email catch-up sessions AFTER: Each email touched only once Clear mind during deep work No more "Sorry for the late reply" messages Predictable response times Evenings and weekends back Pro Tips I Learned The Hard Way: Turn off notifications (You don't need to know instantly when Karen from accounting sends her 5th "friendly reminder") Set up specific email time blocks (I do 9am, 1pm, 4pm - that's it) Use templates for common responses (Work smarter, not harder) Don't open emails until you're ready to process them (Half-read emails are worse than unread ones) Accept that Inbox Zero isn't always possible (And that's okay) The Most Surprising Result? People started respecting my time more. When you stop being instantly available, people stop expecting instant responses. Your inbox is someone else's to-do list for you. The 2-Minute Rule puts you back in control. Want to try it? #ProductivityHacks #EmailManagement #TimeManagement #WorkLifeBalance #ProfessionalDevelopment Pro Tip: Save this post for later - you'll want to reference these steps when you start implementing!

“Hi again. Bumping this to the top of your inbox. Did you see my last email? I wanted to quickly check-in.” Sound familiar? Next time you’re stuck waiting for a reply from your boss or a flaky colleague, here are two approaches you can take:

I stopped checking email for 7 days—Here’s what happened. I thought I was productive. Turns out, I was just busy. So, I decided to stop checking emails for 7 days. What happened next shocked me—and it might surprise you too. Day 1: Anxiety Skyrocketed I kept thinking: What if I miss something important? What if my boss thinks I’m unresponsive? My fingers itched to open Gmail, but I resisted. Lesson from Day 1: 90% of our work-related anxiety is self-imposed. Nothing exploded in my absence. — Day 3: No One Even Noticed By Day 3, I realized most of my emails were things I didn’t need to act on anyway—spam, newsletters, or FYI messages. A surprising insight? The truly urgent matters found their way to me via calls or direct messages. Lesson from Day 3: Email is rarely the fastest way to communicate in emergencies. — Day 5: My Focus Doubled Without the constant pull of email notifications, I completed two major projects in record time. I felt a sense of control I hadn’t experienced in months. Lesson from Day 5: Email distractions are the death of deep work. — Day 7: I Never Want to Go Back I reintroduced email on Day 7, but with strict boundaries—checking it only twice a day. Results? I respond faster, feel less overwhelmed, and protect my deep work time. Lesson from Day 7: Email management isn’t about answering faster—it’s about answering smarter. — Key Takeaways: > Stop checking email constantly—it’s a trap. > Set boundaries, like only checking email at specific times. > Use tools to filter unimportant emails so they never hit your inbox. — Would you dare to try this? If not emails, what’s your biggest daily distraction you wish you could eliminate for a week? Let me know in the comments!

Feeling swamped by emails? You might be making some key inbox errors without even realizing it. Check out our article for insights on common pitfalls and practical strategies to manage your emails more effectively and reclaim your time. https://lnkd.in/gBeEFAJ8

We all know email by now, but let's talk about two buttons causing a lot of confusion: Reply and Reply All ( 😫 ). Reply: Respond only to the person who emailed you. If it’s not relevant to the group, keep it between you two. Reply All: Respond to everyone on the thread. Use this if your message affects the entire group (like updates or feedback). Why does this matter? Hitting Reply All when it's unnecessary floods everyone’s inbox with irrelevant info. Using Reply when Reply All is needed can leave the group in the dark. Studies show unnecessary Reply Alls can lead to email overload, stress, and reduced productivity. On average, workers spend 28% of their workweek on emails! Next time, ask yourself: Who needs to see this? #emailetiquette #productivitytips #worksmart #timemanagement

𝗛𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗼? Every year as the holidays approach, inboxes get flooded. Spam emails are everywhere. You’ve probably seen some like these: ↳Invoice for a service you never signed up for. ↳"I have a great business proposal for you". ↳"You’ve won $xxxx amount! Click here to claim". ↳"Help me move my fortune, and I’ll give you a cut". The list goes on. They’re annoying and, honestly, a little scary sometimes. But here’s the thing: 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗹. Here’s how: 1. 𝗦𝗲𝘁 𝘂𝗽 𝗳𝗶𝗹𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 to automatically weed out suspicious messages. 2. 𝗨𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲 from mailing lists you don’t recognize (but carefully, to avoid traps). 3. Use a 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹 for non-essential signups (Temp emails work too!). 4. Mark 𝘀𝘂𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘀 𝗮𝘀 𝗷𝘂𝗻𝗸 to help your provider improve spam detection. Still overwhelmed? I get it. Managing an inbox during the busiest time of year can feel like a full-time job. That’s where I come in. As a Virtual Assistant, 𝗜 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝗯𝗼𝘅 𝗭𝗲𝗿𝗼 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆. →No important email goes unread. →No spam clogs your focus. →And you get your time back. Inbox management is just one way I help busy professionals keep their chaos under control. Curious? Let’s connect. But before you go, it's your turn: What’s the most outrageous spam email that’s ever hit your inbox? 𝘛𝘰𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸, 𝘐'𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘭 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘸𝘢𝘺. 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘶𝘯𝘦𝘥! #emailmanagement #inboxmanagement #inboxzero #virtualassistant #executivevirtualassistant

First day back at work. Your inbox is full of people waiting for your response. What do you do? ❌ Don't be tempted to start answering emails "first come, first served". This approach can feel like a fair way to tackle your emails. After all, those folks have been waiting the longest for a response. Hold off on that kind thought. What if there's something urgent that needs your attention asap? After more than a decade working in other people's inboxes and more than two decades with my own busy inbox, here's my advice: ✅ Triage. Look through your emails and triage them. I like to use the traffic light system: 🔴 Red = Urgent. Respond asap today. 🟠 Amber = Important. Respond today. 🟢 Green = Respond today or tomorrow. If you don't get to the green emails in good time, send an email letting the recipient know that (a) you've seen their request and (b) an estimated full response time. But how do you decide which emails are urgent? The good news is that people like to tell you. It's up to you if you agree with the urgency, but they certainly think it's urgent. 💡 Top Tip: Scan your email subjects for "urgent" or "important". There could be other signs that suggest an immediate need for your response. If someone has emailed you constantly throughout your holiday knowing you won't get to it for days yet they persist, it could be they have something important to tell you. It might even be urgent. 💡 Top Tip: Start with the most recent email. This again sounds counter-intuitive. But it's actually smart. And you want to work smarter, not harder, especially on your first day back at work. I've returned from holiday (Out of Office clearly stating my return date) and something once urgent is not urgent anymore. If I'd started answering that first, important, urgent email without checking the rest of my inbox, imagine my embarrassment at finding out everything is resolved. Just think of the time wasted. 💡 Remember, as soon as you start sending emails out you will get more emails back. Your priority list will need reprioritising as your first days back at work progress. Take it one email at a time and take a break from your screen for a stretch and a drink. Good luck out there, and in your inbox! Thanks to Scott Whitney for inspiring this post ☺️ ---------------------------------------------- Mary Wyrd: Creative Virtual Assistant The go-to for your to-do list and inbox management extraordinaire Solo business owner or busy creative business owner? Let me in your inbox: www.marywyrd.com