Quick productivity tool for e-mail
Five months ago, I followed a tip I saw on LifeHacker and created a small signature file to append to all mail messages I sent from work. The template looks like this:
This email is: [] actionable [] fyi [] social
Response needed: [] yes [] up to you [] no
I realized today how much I use it when I automatically looked for it as I wrote an email from my personal address. It's been quite effective; people seem send responses more often now if I mark [yes] for "Response needed". Caveat: People who are chronically poor at responding to email don't suddenly leap into action at the sight of my signature. But the time investment in checking the boxes is minimal, so the benefits far outweigh a few failures, for me.
For many emails, it's sometimes difficult to tell the difference between an information-sharing email and a "I need your comment or decision on this plan"-email. The template quickly fixes that confusion, and I've had a couple of people tell me that they appreciate knowing what I'm expecting them to do in response. But the template also forces me to write messages more clearly. I used to frequently get to the bottom of an email, start to check the boxes, and then realize I needed to rewrite the message to clearly call out what I want the reader to do or respond to. As I've continued to use the template, I more often write the email correctly the first time.
The only downside I've had is that if I want a response, I think that automatically makes the email "actionable", so my most frequent pairing is [actionable] & [yes]. My minimalist side wants to combine those into one box, but I also like the clear delineation between the two lines with "I'm asking you to do something" vs "I'd like a response to the email".
This email is: [] actionable [] fyi [] social
Response needed: [] yes [] up to you [] no
I realized today how much I use it when I automatically looked for it as I wrote an email from my personal address. It's been quite effective; people seem send responses more often now if I mark [yes] for "Response needed". Caveat: People who are chronically poor at responding to email don't suddenly leap into action at the sight of my signature. But the time investment in checking the boxes is minimal, so the benefits far outweigh a few failures, for me.
For many emails, it's sometimes difficult to tell the difference between an information-sharing email and a "I need your comment or decision on this plan"-email. The template quickly fixes that confusion, and I've had a couple of people tell me that they appreciate knowing what I'm expecting them to do in response. But the template also forces me to write messages more clearly. I used to frequently get to the bottom of an email, start to check the boxes, and then realize I needed to rewrite the message to clearly call out what I want the reader to do or respond to. As I've continued to use the template, I more often write the email correctly the first time.
The only downside I've had is that if I want a response, I think that automatically makes the email "actionable", so my most frequent pairing is [actionable] & [yes]. My minimalist side wants to combine those into one box, but I also like the clear delineation between the two lines with "I'm asking you to do something" vs "I'd like a response to the email".