Sending Fewer E-mails

A CEO of a large Houston company and I were talking the other day after a Leadership Houston event. We talked about media and how people receive information. The one point he repeated several times was that people send too many emails.

Essentially he meant that once you reach a certain level of seniority in a company, people copy you on everything. From my examination of other people's inboxes, he's absolutely right... so what can/should be done about it?

Shortly after talking to him, I picked up the latest Law Practice Management, one of my favorite magazines. The latest article contains an article on this exact subject: Sending Fewer E-mails.

Dan Pinnington's pithy article covers what people do with the to: line, the cc: line, and, of course, their need to forward ask themselves the follwoing questions before sending any (and all) email:

"Does every person in the To: and CC: lines really need to get this message? Include the relevant parties and omit the rest.

"When you’re responding to e-mails, do you really want to use Reply To All? It may well be that everyone that received the original message does not need to see your reply to it.

"Use distribution lists or address groups with caution.

"Don’t use your system’s Everyone or All Users address group (unless you smell smoke).

"Send RSVPs to meeting and seminar invitations to just the sender unless you have a very good reason to let every invitee know your reply.

"Don’t forward virus warnings.

"Don’t forward jokes, spam or chain-mail messages.

"Understand the hierarchy of communications methods.

"Don’t use e-mail when a face-to-face conversation or a phone call is more appropriate."

The phone? Really? How 20th century! What's next? Handwritten thank you notes?