Email is everywhere in today's workplace because of its speed and cost, and you need to learn to use it well.

One of the most appealing features of e-mail is that it combines the best of the letter and the telephone, providing a form of "talk-writing." Unfortunately, as a result, e-mail tempts writers to become careless.

Some writers go so far as to assume that readers either aren't paying attention to details or simply don't care - after all, it's only an e-mail that will be quickly deleted.

But being careless is a mistake. Most workplace audiences reading e-mail pay attention and evaluate the writer based upon the quality and style of the prose, as well as the content.

In addition, while e-mail might remain informal among friends and family, in the workplace, it is neither private nor informal. In fact, in most places of business, everything you do on their computers is available for public scrutiny.

General Guidelines for Using Email

• E-mail is not private. Your employer might check your mail; a recipient might choose to forward your note to others or print it to share. The same features that make email cheap and easy to send make it easy to publicize.

• Pay attention to spelling, grammar, punctuation, and word usage. Your reader will form an opinion of you based upon the text you send. Think of the e-mail as a snap shot. You don't want to be caught napping or eating.

• Use the different features of your mail system. You might be able to set up aliases (nicknames) for people you write to frequently, create recipient lists (to send the same message to a group of people at once), and attach documents.

Guidelines for composing email messages -->