Monday's E-mail Mewl: Not Taking the Time

As you can imagine I e-mail probably a bit more than most folks. Being I do Web Site Consulting for a living, between that and my E-mail Etiquette endeavors I receive over 500 e-mails each day.

The only way I can keep on top of this many e-mails is to remain as organized as possible. (You can follow my system by reading my article on E-mail Organization.)

One thing I see from those who contact me or ask my assistance is that rather than respond to my questions point-by-point, (see how to How to Down-edit Your E-mail) they'll pop off a response in generalities. 9 out of 10 times these quickie responses do not answer all the questions asked or the e-mailer assumes what they think I meant or required, because they didn't take the time to read the e-mail in it's entirety. "Too busy!"

What this causes is additional unnecessary e-mails and back and forths that wouldn't have occurred if the original e-mail had been carefully read and responded to point by point.

Part of attaining clarity in your e-mails is to take the time -- make the time -- to ensure you are answering all questions asked and that you understand the e-mail as a whole before you hit Reply and start typing simply because you are in a rush.

Take the time and you'll find in the long run you save time!