Clear emails

Clear emails

Most email is skimmed by a busy person deciding in seconds whether to deal with it now, later, or never. A clear email respects that: it has one purpose, states what it needs early, and stays short. The reward is a faster reply and fewer follow-ups.

Method

1. Have one purpose per email. Decide the single thing this email is for (an ask, an answer, an update, a decision) and build around it. Emails cramming three unrelated requests get one answered and two lost; send separate emails or a clearly numbered list.
2. Put the ask or the point up front. Lead with what you need the reader to do or know, then the context (see exec-one-pager's bottom-line-up-front). Making the reader scroll through background to find the request is how emails get set aside "to deal with later" and forgotten.
3. Keep it short and scannable. Short paragraphs, and a bulleted list for multiple points or questions, so the reader can answer each without losing track. A wall of text gets skimmed and half-answered. Cut every sentence that does not help the reader act (see concise-writing).
4. Make the action and deadline explicit. State exactly what you want ("please approve X by Thursday", "let me know which option"), from whom, by when. Vague closings ("let me know your thoughts") get vague or no responses. One clear ask beats an implied one.
5. Give the reader everything they need to reply. The context, the options, the attachment, the link: so answering is a quick yes/no or pick, not a research task. An email that forces the reader to gather information before replying gets delayed.
6. Write a subject line that says what it is. The subject determines whether and when the email is opened; make it specific and honest (see email-subject-lines). "Quick question about the Q3 budget" beats "Hi" or "Following up".

Boundaries

• Clarity and brevity serve the reader; they do not mean cold or curt. A warm greeting and a human tone cost little and matter for the relationship (see email-tone).
• Some emails need length (a detailed proposal, a careful explanation); there, structure and signposting carry the clarity (see email-structure), and a short summary up top still helps.
• Email is the wrong medium for some things: a complex negotiation, a sensitive conversation, or anything needing real back-and-forth is often better as a call (see async-communication's medium choice).