WWYD: Workplace Email Transgressions
Someone takes credit for your work.
A project falls short of its objectives. When the boss asks how this happened, your co-worker throws you under the bus.
Social ineptitude. Imperious demands. Hostile feedback.
The workplace is replete with surprises, and often they appear in our inbox. So how do you respond?
When my instructor for an Internet class was teaching us the mechanics of email, she emphasized a point worthy of all caps: NEVER WRITE AN EMAIL WHEN MAD!
I scoffed. Surely, I thought, she does not practice what she preaches, but she maintained her stance against every challenge thrown to her by her students.
She pounded the message so deep that I started to come down with a sense ‘œuh-ohs,’ as I mused over the many emails I’ve had to write stressed and under deadline. I would never be dumb enough to communicate something I’d regret and have it immortalized in written documentation. But tone does not translate well over email, hence why we sometimes use unbusiness-like emoticons in our non-work emails.
‘œSorry, I’m unavailable to assist with your project at this time,’ written in response to an email requesting immediate help may read more like, ‘œToo bad jerk. Do it yourself. I’m busy.’ Interpretation depends on circumstances, and to some extent, your reputation in the office.
Just imagine how hard it is to respond to an email sent to your whole team by a co-worker who just stole a project from you that could lead to a hefty commission. Or in a similar scenario, your co-worker dumped a project on you that will take up your whole weekend, and he didn’t even consult with you.
Dearest readers, how do you respond to an incendiary work email? Do you take time to cool off? Do you type away, hit send and consequences be damned? Make phone calls instead? What happens when you respond while angry?
Please share your experiences and teach us how to handle workplace email transgressions.
Whenever I am tempted to send an angry email, either at work or in personal life, I have an ironclad rule to wait until I have slept before sending it. Sometimes I write the email without sending it in order to vent, other times I just wait until the next morning and decide what to do then. I’ve saved myself a lot of problems in life by adhering to this rule, and can’t think of any situation in which I’ve been worse off by adhering to it.
I once sent a very nasty e-mail to a scraper telling him he was scum. But recently I’ve also tried to be mindful of what I’m writing. E-mails are forever…potentially.
Larry, at a couple of my old jobs, I’ve had my resignation letter all set in the drafts folder. At one job in particular, I had a MS Paint file in which I’m flipping the bird and just say, “I quit.” Thankfully, I never sent that email. But boy, was I tempted!
Mrs. Micah: scrapers deserve emails with viruses and worms. Anger optional.