Consider these 'sins' before you hit 'send'

By BILL HUSTED

Cox News Service

October 7, 2008

In these days of Twittering, instant messages and phone texting, e-mail is old hat. But it's a good old hat.

For serious communication — work, school and most personal correspondence — e-mail is still the way America communicates.

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Like many of my excuses, this one plays a little loose with the facts. It goes like this:

You'd think we'd all be e-mail aces by now. But as I correspond with readers I see the best and worst. Believe me, there's a lot of "worst."

I've made a living as a writer since I was 21, so I feel comfortable offering advice that will make your e-mail do the hard work for you. It'll do a better job when you complain or need a favor. It'll make you look smarter at work and school. Best yet, it'll keep you from making dumb mistakes that are embarrassing, or worse.

Bad e-mail can cost you money, friendships and jobs. This column may be the most important one I've written in a while.

The first thing to keep in mind about e-mail is that there's only one way to judge your message: by the words you choose and how you put them together.

— Which brings us to Sin No. 1: E-mail that makes you look like a fool. While e-mail is less formal than a paper letter, too many people get lax with spelling and grammar. E-mail is usually pounded out and then sent along with little or no editing. That's a mistake. Taking a few moments to correct spelling and typos, or to rewrite a clunky sentence, is a terrific start in your e-mail rehab.

That's even true when writing a casual e-mail to a friend. If you develop the habit of sloppy e-mails, it's hard to break when the mail becomes more important.

— Sin No. 2: Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde e-mail. In real life you're polite and decent. But when riled you turn into an e-mail mad dog. It's easy to do, since you're unlikely to get punched out. And insults, especially those that seem clever at the time, are fun.

Maybe you think such e-mails make you seem tough. But here's the truth: It makes you seem like a jerk. It can be a legitimate complaint to the cable folks, a quibble with a bill or even a response to a terse e-mail from a friend, but it's not effective. In most cases you hope to convince someone to do something for you. Being a jerk is not an effective way to do that.

— Sin No. 3: The fastest gun in the West didn't always win the fight. If you just can't let some issue pass without firing off an angry e-mail, go ahead and write it. But don't hit the send button right away. Read it again in 24 hours. Many times you'll decide to tone down the e-mail or kill it. Most of the time that's the smart thing to do.

— Sin No. 4: Avoid that sinking sensation. Misdirected e-mail can make for some very funny stories. A newspaper buddy, at another newspaper many years ago, wrote what he thought was a highly amusing e-mail about his editor. He meant to send it to a co-worker. But, maybe because the editor's name was on his mind, he sent it to the editor instead. He is now working elsewhere.

There are several ways to get into a similar mess. Blindly clicking on "reply to all" can share negative comments and personal information with unintended others.

Many of us send e-mails that include pastes from earlier e-mails. You may be including remarks that can wound.

Read every word — including material you pasted — before you send an e-mail along. One smart method is to hit the "save as a draft" button each time you write an e-mail. That's a fine way to protect you from yourself. If you do that each time, you'll get a second chance to read the e-mail, correct mistakes, tone down any excesses and avoid e-mail disaster.

Feel free to write me at tecbud@bellsouth.net to offer your own e-mail horror stories, or advice. Think of it as your homework.