7 email habits that drive people nuts

It’s easy, fast and lacks the depth of understanding most people get from talking face to face. Unfortunately, many people don’t realize just how much of this understanding they lose by using email. As a result, they pick up bad habits and start driving co-workers, bosses and friends crazy.

Here are seven particularly bad habits, and how you can fix them so people won’t want to kill you:

1. Hanging questions

Any email that involves a request or question requires a follow-up. Even something as short as, “K.” However, some people seemed to have missed this point, and they leave requests or small questions completely unanswered. The problem here is that the sender has no idea whether you even read the message.

Here’s the fix:

2. Buried requests

A question or actionable information that is sandwiched between unimportant information is a buried request. Consider the difference between these two emails:

Hi Bob, I’ve been considering your new proposal for adjusting the customer service policy. I think we should meet up and talk about it. Your proposal seems actionable, but I have a few concerns.

Compare that with this: