The E-Mail Game

 

Oh no! Here he goes again!

One of the most precious resources in projects is time. However, we routinely squander time by writing long e-mails that someone who lacks time will receive and either misinterpret or never read. Why do we do this? All too often, we decide that the fastest way to deliver information is to write an e-mail. The problem is that we are "pushing" data. We certainly are not communicating. We have the delusion of saving time because we can fire off an e-mail and not worry about being questioned or having to schedule a mutually convenient time.

E-mail Does Not Guarantee Timeliness

This is one of the biggest failings of e-mail! It is not real-time. For example, I write an e-mail and send it. Some time later you read and send a response. By then, I've gone to lunch. I reply after lunch and you are in meetings and don't read my answer until the following day. That is not very expedient!

If time isn't important, e-mail is fine. If you need to resolve something quickly, …

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