The Most Efficient Way to Respond to Email

• Read the email carefully.
• Decide how much time you will need to reply, then set a timer to keep track of the amount of time you spent responding to this email.
• Highlight questions that require an answer (hit ‘Reply’ then you can highlight, underline or list them separately).
• Reply as a ROUGH DRAFT –  This draft IS NOT TO BE SENT!
  • Answer only the questions you highlighted
  • Do not worry about grammar, spelling or redundancy in this ‘sloppy copy’
  • Do not edit anything you write until you have completed your entire rough draft
• Pause for a few seconds.  Look away.
• Read the draft – out load, if possible.
• Look at each highlighted question and check that it was answered.
• Now you should edit your response: (pretending that the other person has no patience/time to read your email)
  • Is it succinct and to the point? Eliminate as much as possible.
  • Cover only the topic of the incoming email. Do not add anything outside of the single topic. New topics should be in a new email with a new Subject line.
  • Remove any extraneous words, thoughts or sentences. Edit ruthlessly but quickly.
  • Check for spelling/grammatical errors and punctuation.
  • Did you answer the questions in the best possible way, within time limitations?
  • Add any *required* niceties.
• What is the next step?  Is action required from the recipient or from you?  If so, clarify who needs to do what, and by when.
• If you have any questions, make sure they are written clearly and concisely.
• Hit ‘Send’
• Turn off the timer.  Measure how long this took.

Harold Meyer and Susan Lasky are both Board Certified and Senior Certified ADHD Coaches.
To contact the authors: use the contact form.

Fine Print

ADD and ADHD are used interchangeably for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.

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