Professional Email Communication Tips

Professional Email Communication Tips pexels.com Use a formal tone. You typically email a professor or supervisor when you need help with something. As in, they are going out of their way to assist you, which means you must be nice. Or if anything, they are asking you a question which in return still means formality is necessary. The reason being formal or professional is best is because these are physical, written documents which basically means they are essentially always out there existing. So the last thing you would want to do is be a) inappropriate, or b) rude. That would not be a fun situation to explain to your college dean or boss. The true definition of formal is, being done in accordance with rules of convention or etiquette, according to Google of course. So in layman’s terms, it is being official. It is important to keep this is mind given they are technically still your superior, which entails them obtaining power and calling your shots. So yeah, be somewhat nice to these very capable people. Keep your focus. If you are sending an email to a professor or someone who has authority, then there must be a reason for the communication in the first place. Have intent. The worst thing would be to send an email with zero purpose. That is bothersome and blatantly annoying. This should be pretty easy to abide by given you should be aware of why you are going out of your way to talk to them. Common sense, right? Well, it may be harder in the situation when you are uncertain of how to phrase a question or how to sign off on the email. There are also certain words or sayings that you should make sure to steer clear of because you may potentially cross a line, which is not good. You would not want to accidentally or intentionally flirt with your supervisor. It is not professional or really appropriate. If you cannot help the love from spreading, then wait until you are out of the class or job, which is an entire different article in itself. So yeah, keep focused. Proofread. Okay, so this seems completely obvious and expected, yet many have yet to come on board. Sad, I know. Proofreading is everything, and without it, you most likely will not be receiving an email response. And if you do, it may not be polite and not what you exactly had in mind. So save yourself some trouble and edit yourself, people. This is a major tip because it helps you out in all aspects of life, really. Communication has separate tones and knowing which one to use for a specific situation is half the battle. Once you figure out what it is you want to say, you have to be able to articulately phrase the question, which is where many get confused. But you will stay on the right path from now on because I have faith in you. You can think of it this way: would you send a finalized draft of a paper sans rereading and editing it? Well, I would hope not. You want to be able to show your supervisor or professor that you are fully adept to being serious and can handle maturity. It may seem highly ridiculous but it truly is necessary. You shall see. There are numerous tips that you can apply to your emailing career, but there a few that deserve your utmost attention. They are the ones that will get you far in life, but really, will assist you in being perceived as a real professional and able to handle sophisticated situations. At least, that is what we hope for. Emailing can be tough given you are not always completely sure of how to state something, especially when it is with someone you usually talk to in person. But hey, communication is vital and in order to write effectively, you need to know which proper inflection to use. So get to writing/emailing, kids.