Recently I had a conversation with another practice administrator in Little Rock about the Physician Ownership Disclosure statement we had drafted. When I offered to e-mail her a copy, she said, "Oh, we don't have e-mail at our practice, can you fax it?" No e-mail? On a 75-email day I might wish I didn't have e-mail for an instant or two but over all it is efficient, environmentally friendly, and effective – if used properly.

 

Unlike the practice mentioned above, most of us depend on e-mail so much we can't imagine life without it. We receive 50 – 100 e-mails a day at work and still find time to check our personal e-mail to communicate with friends and family. We are able to keep in touch and communicate with people professionally and personally as we never have been before. It's true, e-mail is an alternative to the telephone, letters, even face-to-face conversations but it is not a replacement for them. Email has unique realities. Careers have been damaged and relationships destroyed because of the failure to recognize the unique attributes of e-mail.

 

We use email as though it is the most comprehensive communication tool available to us; but for true, complete communication, it is quite limited. Research has shown that 55 percent of interpersonal communication is body language, 38 percent is voice tone and only 7 percent is the words. All e-mail has is words. E-mail is completely devoid of body language or voice tone yet we often use it – perhaps fall back on it – to convey sensitive information and feedback or informal banter. Here are some tips for using e-mail appropriately and effectively.

 

E-mail is for convenience – both the sender's and the receiver's – and is considerably less personal. E-mail is great for basic interactions like setting meeting times, asking/answering straightforward, fact-based questions and positive communications like "Thank you" or "Well done!" Interestingly we often inappropriately default to e-mail to address a seemingly minor issue and regret it later because to the recipient the issue wasn't so minor after all. As well, we have probably all wished we could just, or made the mistake of sending an e-mail to address a large, difficult matter rather bolstering ourselves for a face-to-face conversation. 

 

I know a number of people who, when faced with addressing an issue with someone in their professional or personal life will write out all of their thoughts and feelings in an e-mail and hit send. While writing out our thoughts and feelings can be helpful in confronting a difficult situation, do it in your word processor as preparation for a conversation. If you cannot face having a real time conversation about something, you have no business writing it in an e-mail.

 

Know that a visible distribution list is part of the message. In business, it is very helpful and appropriate to know who else is receiving the same message. When e-mailing to more than one person, it is as though you are speaking to all those people gathered in a room (only without the benefit of tone, gestures or expression). People may feel embarrassed if they are singled out in a group e-mail. Even the most factual or benignly intended reference to a possible shortcoming can feel like a huge embarrassment to someone when referenced in a group e-mail.

 

Much of your image depends on how you come across in e-mail. Most e-mail programs have automatic edit features that will alert you to misspellings or grammar errors.

 

Sometimes we read the most recent addition to an e-mail thread and pass it along to someone, not realizing that there is sensitive information in one of previous messages on the thread. Also, before forwarding an e-mail consider your intentions in doing so. When you forward an e-mail, the relationship(s) you are affecting become greater in number and more complex.

 

Check your e-mail box at least once a day.
E-mail is the most common communication method; you could miss something important or appear nonresponsive, if you do not check your e-mail frequently. Your practice should have a policy requiring employees to check their work e-mail once or twice a day to be sure they do not miss timely, important communication.

 

It automatically sends a message to all senders letting them know you are unable to check e-mail thereby managing the expectations as to your response time. 

 

An e-mail that continues for several paragraphs, perhaps to the bottom of the screen or beyond, is daunting to the reader and frequently is skimmed rather than thoroughly read.

 

If you are struggling to provide all the necessary details while still being brief, a phone conversation is likely the better communication mode.

 

Specificity in the subject line helps the recipient to gauge the urgency of your e-mail and assists in organization for storing and recalling e-mails.

 

Sometimes it is difficult to keep up with all of the e-mails especially at work. Make it easier for recipients to respond to your requests by subtly distinguishing them.If there is a deadline, politely include it in your message.

 

It seems obvious, but bears reminding. Do questions end with question marks? And, statements end with periods? Correct punctuation helps the recipient process the information faster and respond appropriately and promptly. Exclamation points, however, often lead to interpretation problems unless they follow positives, "Super Job!" or "Good Luck!"

 

E-mail is not the mindless communication mode we sometimes use it as. Remember, every e-mail immediately becomes a permanent record. When you put something in e-mail, you have put it in writing. There's no shredding e-mails, they can be retrieved long after they have been deleted.

 

For governmental and many other institutions, e-mails are a matter of public record. Remember Alberto Gonzalez, former Attorney General, Michael Brown, former FEMA director, and Florida Representative Mark Foley? Their e-mails were the smoking guns of their respective careers. If you work for yourself or a private organization, know that civil litigators consider e-mail a fertile, unending field of discovery because people use it casually, even conversationally, yet it is a permanent record.

 

Be strong when you read but smart and sensitive when you write.