Email Etiquette

Most people probably know the feeling, it's your well-deserved weekend, you're getting cozy on the couch with a good movie to watch and ping. Somebody from work starts an email thread, possibly with the entire organisation. The worst part is, they expect you to answer it as soon as possible. Personally I think a change is needed in this area of work culture, people need their time off to actually be off-time.

Be the change

The saying "Be the change you want to see in the world." is commonly attributed to Gandhi. While this is good advice, he did not state this. When doing just a little bit of research on this, one may come across the real saying:

“We but mirror the world. All the tendencies present in the outer world are to be found in the world of our body. If we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change. As a man changes his own nature, so does the attitude of the world change towards him. This is the divine mystery supreme. A wonderful thing it is and the source of our happiness. We need not wait to see what others do.” – Mahatma Gandhi

I get it, this is way less catchy than the paraphrased version. It also is a bit harder to remember and state quickly, so that's probably why it isn't as popular. However, the meaning is more or less the same, but it has a bit more information about the why of changing yourself first. Gandhi states that we mirror the world, therefor the world mirrors us. That way if one changes, to other changes with it. Changing the world is quite hard, however, changing yourself is doable.

Handbook to emailing

So in being the change I want to see, I've decided to write down my personal rules for emailing at work:

• Only email during regular work hours. Here in the Netherlands, most people work part-time. I find it totally fine to email someone who isn't working that day, as long as it is during actual working hours. Ofcourse I do not expect them to respond in their free time.
• It is fine to email someone with something that relieves them of work or otherwise benefits them. In case you both end up working out of office, they know I'm doing something they won't have to do anymore.
• When something is a very time-sensitive matter, it is also OK to send emails. A little guide to what is very time-sensitive: if it should have been done already.

Whilst I might state them as rules, they are not. I don't always follow them. It also depends on the person, very close colleagues are fine to email at 4 'o clock saturday morning.