Often emails are rambling and unorganized, forcing the reader to wade through blocks of text with low business value. When it comes to written communication, less is more.
Having hundreds of emails in your inbox is not uncommon. But it's very uncommon to find people who successfully manage their inbox. Email has a bad name in business primarily because people don't usually treat email correctly.
Emails can be a vital tool to your company and your software development project, but it has to be well managed. Emails should be an accurate record of requests, conversations, and decisions - they are legal documents and should be treated with the same care as any other correspondence with clients or employees.
Here is a series of email rules/etiquette that govern how to better manage your emails.
Most people don’t manage their inbox effectively. Emails should be treated as a list to do. As you complete a task you can just delete the email.
Email is a very powerful business tool. The main problem is that for most people it is out of control - emails build up until they are impossible to manage.
To help minimize mailbox clutter, try these tips:
If someone asks you to perform a task by email, don't reply "OK, I will do that" or fail to reply at all. Instead, do the task and reply "Done" when the task has been completed, and then delete the email. This way the person requesting the task knows that it has been done, and doesn't waste time following you up.
Always include the relevant URL to your emails, like when you want to request or just made a change to a webpage or document. This way people can easily check the details of the tasks. This is especially important for "Done" emails.
If you are using a task tracking system like Azure DevOps, GitHub, or Jira, also include the link to the PBI/Issue/task/PR for extra information.
When replying to a bug in an email, make sure your response helps everyone understand the current state, what you found, and how it was resolved.
When a client or coworker **verbally** asks you to do a task... How do you make sure you will remember it?
<endIntro />
The best solution is to **send yourself an email**, Cc'ing the person who asked you, and including "[As per our conversation](/do-you-send-as-per-our-conversation-emails)..." This way both of you know that the job needs to be done. This is really important especially when you are working for clients so there is a documented record of the requests for work. It also gives both parties an opportunity to leave feedback on the request for work.
<boxEmbed
style="yakshaver"
body={<>
**Tip:** Use [YakShaver](https://yakshaver.ai/) to send yourself an email. See this [How to send an email to yourself using YakShaver (10 sec) - on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hdwr0T1hChE)
</>}
figurePrefix="none"
figure=""
/>
Another scenario is when you've found something you should work on, but don't have time to do it immediately... you should also send a "To myself" email, Cc'ing someone who is also interested in that task (e.g. The Product Owner).
<boxEmbed
style="info"
body={<>
**Note:** If the request is relevant to client work or an existing Product Backlog then it would be better to create or update a PBI and @mention the Product Owner and relevant people as per [using @ mentions in PBI](/when-you-use-mentions-in-a-pbi).
</>}
figurePrefix="none"
figure=""
/>
<imageEmbed alt="Image" size="large" showBorder={true} figurePrefix="bad" figure="Writing yourself a "Post-It Note" is not the best method" src="/uploads/rules/send-to-myself-emails/postit-screen.png" />
<boxEmbed
style="tips"
body={<>
**Tips:**
* Make it clearer to everyone else [by making "To myself" a heading or bold](/include-names-as-headings)\
Always add "To myself" in the email body - not on the subject - so that other people Cc'd know what is going on
* When replying "Done", address it to the Product Owner (or another person), not to yourself... Only crazy people talk to themselves :-)
* Include an estimate and priority too...so the expectations are set better. With this estimate, the Product Owner can stop you if they think the amount of time doesn't provide good ROI
* If there are other people addressed in the email, put the "To myself" at the top so the tasks aren't buried at the bottom of the email.
</>}
figurePrefix="none"
figure=""
/>
<emailEmbed
from="John"
to="John"
cc="Adam, Uly, Dave"
bcc=""
subject="Add a bad example to Rules to Better UI - Progress bar"
shouldDisplayBody={true}
body={<>
## To myself,
As per my conversation with Lei, the rule on progress bars {{link}} is missing a bad example
1. Include a bad example to Rules to Better UI - progress bar
It's estimated to take **2 hours** and I'll make it my #1 priority on the next Sprint, starting tomorrow
</>}
figurePrefix="good"
figure="Send yourself an email with estimate and prioritization"
/>
<emailEmbed
from="John"
to="Dave"
cc="Adam, Uly"
bcc=""
subject="RE: Add a bad example to Rules to Better UI - Progress bar"
shouldDisplayBody={true}
body={<>
## Hi Dave,
\> 1. Include a bad example to Rules to Better UI - progress bar
Done - This change has been made and can be found at {{ URL }}
</>}
figurePrefix="good"
figure="Correctly replying Done to a person who is involved in the task, not to youself"
/>
Always follow up important conversations (usually via phone or IM) with an email that begins with the words "As per our conversation". The intent is to document what was said and agreed upon.
When possible, go the extra mile and confirm the requirements by sharing your screen with the drafted email, and then add the words “checked by XXX” at the top before sending.
It is good practice to be clear on what you want. One way you can make things clearer is to number tasks or questions.
When you are planning on meeting someone or planning an event, it is very important that the date is extra clear.
To ensure complete clarity, you should always include the day of the week alongside the date when it occurs. This will ensure there is no confusion, and everyone is on the same page.
When communicating important information, it's crucial to ensure that the main purpose is immediately clear.
Burying the headline, by placing the primary message deep within the text, can lead to confusion and miscommunication.
All business emails (that are useful) should be in one of the 4 following formats:
When asking for changes on a web page, Word document, PowerPoint slide, or code, always use "change from X to Y".
This process consists of including the original version of the content ("X") along with the changes you require ("Y"). It means you easily see the page or file content as it was prior to your changes.
This history is convenient for future reference and also makes it very clear to the person doing the changes exactly what the new file is meant to look like.
Your boss asks you to change a page on your website. You discuss it with your team and come up with the changes. Wouldn't it be nice if your boss could see exactly what was changed?
Sometimes you will need to send a new version for an email. This often is due to 2 main reasons:
Email works better when the right people are included from the start. Keeping everyone in the loop, by CC’ing or replying to all when it makes sense, avoids confusion, cuts down on back and forth, and keeps decisions clear for everyone involved.
Sometimes you get the same task from 2 different people. Sometimes even the same person sends over-lapping emails. Sometimes you find duplicated PBIs.
Whether you keep a backlog or are just using your email inbox as a to-do list, you have a choice to make:
Reducing noise in email threads is easy now we have Office365 and OneDrive.
Sometimes you can't complete a task right away or anytime soon. People might just say: "I can't do it this week, but I should have it done by the end of next week".
Another scenario is when the task should be done or will expire after a period of time. For example "Send Google Analytics data after a month" or "Remove course banner once the course is completed".
If you leave it like that there is a high chance it gets forgotten as remembering tasks is a highly unreliable method.
Efficient people don't rely on their memory and instead, use some way to make sure they don't forget to do that task. Common ways are to make a note in a paper diary or stick a post-it note to a screen, but there are better ways.
There are times you should have your email checked by someone else before sending it. This way you are guaranteed instant feedback and you won't clog up someone else's inbox with unnecessary emails or mistakes.
Simply ask the person to come over and check it on your computer, or call them and share your screen if they’re not nearby.
Having standards and email templates is great. It helps keep consistency, and the recipients know the format of the information they’re receiving and so can process it quickly.