Write the Right Message

Emails are quick ways to send information. But depending on how they’re worded, they can send the wrong message that offends employees and lowers morale.

We’ve all heard the expression, “It’s not what you say, but how you say it.” Well, this is also true with written correspondences. The person you’re sending information to can’t see you smiling or hear your voice inflection to know you’re joking. So, what is meant to be neutral or jovial can come across as angry or sarcastic.

Consider the supervisor who wrote, “Oh, you just took lunch?” She could mean you recently went to lunch or you just decided to take lunch now without clearing it with her first. Depending on whether the employee probes further to find out if his boss is angry or inquisitive this statement could be another pebble in their already rocky relationship.

When you’re sending a note, choose congenial words that show you’re not being confrontational. Using words like great, enjoy, wonderful, thank you and please usually get a positive reception.

It’s a good idea to ask questions in your emails instead of making demands. Try writing something like, “When do you think you’ll be done with that report?” As opposed to, “Submit that report by 5 p.m.” Especially, if this is your first request and the employee isn’t usually late.

Here are some other things you’ll want to avoid writing.

1. “So let's go over that again.” It sounds like you’re lecturing the employee instead of helping them learn a new skill.

2. “Thank you for patiently waiting.” It’s presumptive to write this when you don’t know if the employee is unhappy about the wait.

3. “Next time do things differently so this won’t happen again.” Don’t blame the worker without acknowledging your mistakes when you both contributed to the problem.

4. “We’ll see.” This seems insincere, like you are delaying answering “no” until later.

5. “The company only made one mistake.” One mistake is too many when it impacts the employee’s productivity or paycheck.

6. “If you read my instructions this wouldn’t have happened.” This assumes the worker didn’t read the previous emails. Maybe the instructions weren’t written clearly.

7. “This is how it’s done.” It’s rude to explain job responsibilities that an employee does every day, as if the person hasn’t been working.

8.  “You made so many errors we can’t use your work.” This is hard to take coming from a supervisor who routinely makes mistakes - even having several typos in the shortest of emails - and who refuses to correct errors when they’re pointed out.

 

9. “It’s not my fault; it’s a computer error.” Computers are programmed and operated by people. If any mistakes are made they probably came from the people working on the computers.   

10. “I’m sure by now you figured out how things are done around here.” The supervisor should explain the rules and not assume employees know them.

What morale-lowering messages have you received in a work email?