Nov
3

How NOT to drive people f*ing insane with email

culture, customer service, general, resourcefulness, tips

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How NOT to drive people f*ing insane with emailI wrote the following tips for my current batch of entrepreneurs, but thought they might have more general application here.  Email is like a hammer: it’s a great tool when used effectively, and f*ing painful when it isn’t.  Enjoy!

Email.  We use it every day.  But are we using it as effectively as we can?  Probably not, if we’re not doing the following:

  1. Use Reply All: Before I came to Bizdom, I hated Reply All.  I thought all it did was clutter up my inbox.  Now? I realize it’s the reason my inbox isn’t cluttered – it’s informative.  If I’m cc’ed on an email, I want to know how the conversation is going and whether the issue’s been resolved.  When I cc someone on an email, I want them to be part of the conversation.  Maniacal use of ‘Reply All’ helps this immensely.  Do it as a matter of common practice.
  2. Informative Subject Lines: There’s a reason newspapers, blogs, and various other forms of media use headlines – it lets the intended recipient know what the communication is about.  It allows them to skim the headline and prioritize.  When you recycle an old email for convenience sake, you’ve made the subject line useless.  And ultimately put your own convenience over that of the recipient, which leads me to my next point:
  3. Put yourself in the shoes of the recipient: You want something from them, make it easy for them to give it to you.  You want them to read the email? Make sure the subject matches the content.  You want them to do something after they read the email? Ask.  An email with a document attached could mean “I need you to review this immediately” or “I just wanted you to have a copy of this” or “Hey look at me! I can use attachments!”  Without a direct call to action, you’re making it difficult to get the recipient to take any action, much less the action you want them to take.
  4. Use a signature block: If someone wants to follow up on your email, make it easy for them to contact you.  Give them your email address, phone number, address, HAM radio call sign, whatever it takes. Signature blocks automatically added to your email achieve this in a no muss, no fuss manner.

When I was improvising, one of the big moments of self discovery I had was when I realized that everything we do onstage looks like a choice, so we should be conscious of that choice and make it a choice.  When it comes to something as mundane as sending an email, this same principle applies.  Ask yourself – what result am I trying to obtain with this action, and have I done everything to make that result obtainable. Have I given it 100%?

Some of you do this consistently and regularly, and clearly get what I’m talking about.  To you, I offer nothing but praise and encouragement.  Your efforts matter and you will be effective.

Some of you will think I’m an email maniac who’s obsessing about some minor points.   To you, I ask – faced with the choice of communicating effectively and communicating ineffectively, what would possibly justify choosing the ineffective route? Effective people take effective action – that’s what makes them effective.

In the comments, please share your email pet peeves or opportunities for excellence.

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Email.  We use it every day.  But are we using it as effectively as we can?  Probably not, if we’re not doing the following:

1. Use Reply All: Before I came to Bizdom, I hated Reply All.  I thought all it did was clutter up my inbox.  Now? I realize it’s the reason my inbox isn’t cluttered – it’s informative.  If I’m cc’ed on an email, I want to know how the conversation is going and whether the issue’s been resolved.  When I cc someone on an email, I want them to be part of the conversation.  Maniacal use of ‘Reply All’ helps this immensely.  Do it as a matter of common practice.

2. Informative Subject Lines: There’s a reason newspapers, blogs, and various other forms of media use headlines – it lets the intended recipient know what the communication is about.  It allows them to skim the headline and prioritize.  When you recycle an old email for convenience sake, you’ve made the subject line useless.  And ultimately put your own convenience over that of the recipient, which leads me to my next point:

3. Put yourself in the shoes of the recipient: You want something from them, make it easy for them to give it to you.  You want them to read the email? Make sure the subject matches the content.  You want them to do something after they read the email? Ask.  An email with a document attached could mean “I need you to review this immediately” or “I just wanted you to have a copy of this” or “Hey look at me! I can use attachments!”  Without a direct call to action, you’re making it difficult to get the recipient to take any action, much less the action you want them to take. 

4. Use a signature block: If someone wants to follow up on your email, make it easy for them to contact you.  Give them your email address, phone number, address, HAM radio call sign, whatever it takes. Signature blocks automatically added to your email achieve this in a no muss, no fuss manner.    

When I was improvising, one of the big moments of self discovery I had was when I realized that everything we do onstage looks like a choice, so we should be conscious of that choice and make it a choice.  When it comes to something as mundane as sending an email, this same principle applies.  Ask yourself – what result am I trying to obtain with this action, and have I done everything to make that result obtainable. Have I given it 100%?

Some of you do this consistently and regularly, and clearly get what I’m talking about.  To you, I offer nothing but praise and encouragement.  Your efforts matter and you will be effective.

Some of you will think I’m an email maniac who’s obsessing about some minor points.   To you, I ask – faced with the choice of communicating effectively and communicating ineffectively, what would possibly justify choosing the ineffective route? Effective people take effective action – that’s what makes them effective.

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Nov
0

3 Big Ideas from Big Communications’s Lisa Stern

culture, entrepreneurship, personality, start-ups

3 Big Ideas from Big Communicationss Lisa SternWe had the pleasure of taking the current team of Bizdom entrepreneurs (whom I am calling Team Hammer Pants, since they can’t come up with a team name of their own) to Big Communications, to meet with Lisa Stern, the Founder.

Lisa gave a great overview of the founding story of Big, as well as a description of their culture.  I could easily write a dozen entries on Lisa and Big (hell, I could write one just on how great their offices are – they are absolutely beautiful), but I want to focus on 3 Big takeaways from their story and culture.

3 Big Ideas from Big Communications

1. The business you find success in may not be the one you start in.

Big originally started purely doing video production.  Now they handle communications for health care companies.  This isn’t to say your initial idea is unimportant and therefore unworthy of proper research.  Rather, the lesson here is that you’ve got to follow the natural wave of your business and fish where the fish are – build on the success you earn, rather than the success you wish you had.

2. Passion means emotional investment in what you do.

This was a point I tried to emphasize at my TEDx presentation.  It’s not about doing what you love, but rather loving what you do.  I’ve heard lots of people talk about ‘passion’ and seen people confuse obstinacy and unfounded pride with passion. Having passion doesn’t mean that you can magically will something to happen.  Instead, it means bringing an emotional investment to what you do – finding the love in what you do.  When I asked Lisa what she’s currently passionate about she said “I’m really passionate about how we staff projects.”  Trust me, no one says “When I grow up, I want to staff projects!”  But she’s found the interest and passion in that task, and that’s a beautiful thing.

3. Vision is about having a goal you’re moving towards

Another great insight into an oft-cited entrepreneurial trait: vision.  Vision isn’t about having a grandiose vision about what success will look like (yachts or being on Oprah), but rather about having a very specific goal you’re moving towards.

Bonus idea: Not really a bonus idea, but rather a combination of the final two, and it’s this – any old passion or vision won’t do.  You’ve got to have a specific type of passion and vision to be a successful entrepreneur.  I meet a lot of people who are very emotional (what they think is ‘passionate’) and have a well defined vision for themselves (usually of them on a yacht with Oprah), who think as a result they’re entrepreneurs.  I can give you a well defined vision of what I’d do if I won the lottery (it wouldn’t be Oprah or a yacht), but that doesn’t mean I’m going to win it.  I’m extremely passionate about fantasy football, but that doesn’t mean I should make a career out of it.

What do you think? Will any old vision or passion do? Or do you need something more?

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Oct
0

3 ways of being better than everybody else

culture, isms, personality, resourcefulness, tips

3 ways of being better than everybody elseEasy quick no brainers to be better than everybody else*

1. Have a kick ass email signature.

Make it easy for people to contact you.  So automatically put your email address, phone, twitter, website, etc. in your email signature.  That way, someone wants to contact you after reading your email, all the info they need is right there.  A discreet quote is fine, but not necessary.

2. Apologize for interrupting people.

Time’s short, so you may need to cut someone off and get to the chase, but do apologize and give them a chance to continue.

3. Say thanks, and please.

Extremely effective in business communications.  Someone does you a solid, thank ‘em.  Need something from someone? Be courteous enough to ask nicely.

4. Bonus Tip: Know how to end conversations.

It’s classy and clean to make it clear that the communication is over, whether that’s phone, face to face or email.

*better at everyone else at communicating, which is the key to everything. While these may seem like simple random tips, these will put you ahead of a ridiculous number of people.

What other simple things can you do that put you over the top?

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