121–130 of 152 posts
I am thinking seriously about Yishan-style CEOs at this point. I wonder how many professional (as opposed to founder) Yishan-style CEOs even exist at this point. Yishan is not a founder-CEO BTW.
What is being a Yishan-style CEO except for the fact that you're not a founder/co-founder? I'm not sure how this is relevant to the article above?
I started to follow this approach [1] 6 month ago and it is amazing how much clearer my own thoughts in communication have become. 1. Subjects with keywords. The subject clearly states the purpose of the email, and specifically, what you want them to do with your note. Keywords: ACTION, SIGN, INFO, DECISION, REQUEST, COORD 2. Bottom Line Up Front (BLUF). Lead your emails with a short, staccato statement that declares…
Rules for good emails 1. Keep the message as short as necessary but no shorter. 2. Put the most important information at the top of the message. 3. If it email is for an ask, call out from who you need the response and put it at the top of the message. 4. If you need to send a long email with many details, put the most important information at the top (ie. what the reader needs to know) and then fill in the body with…
>Hey Jane, I need your input on how to prioritize my current work. Can you provide guidance on where I should focus? >Bug XYZ was assigned to me and it's taking longer to complete because we have a dependency on Vendor ABC completing a change to their web service. This is impacting the commitment to my team on Feature 123 because we are near the end of our sprint. >Lemme know. Pss, amateur. That's way too many words.…
Hi Jane,
I'm focusing on feature 123 since XYZ is blocked by ABC.
-A
Rules for good emails 1. Keep the message as short as necessary but no shorter. 2. Put the most important information at the top of the message. 3. If it email is for an ask, call out from who you need the response and put it at the top of the message. 4. If you need to send a long email with many details, put the most important information at the top (ie. what the reader needs to know) and then fill in the body with…
I dunno, dude, I'm kinda looking the two-word reply style in the article. My suggested Verizon of the message here would be "Hey Jane; let's 1:1." Or, if you think face to face communication is a waste of time, "Hey Jane; pick one for Friday: feature 123 or bug xyz?"
TO: Jane
SUBJECT: Bug XYZ blocked. Feature ABC?
BODY:
I started to follow this approach [1] 6 month ago and it is amazing how much clearer my own thoughts in communication have become. 1. Subjects with keywords. The subject clearly states the purpose of the email, and specifically, what you want them to do with your note. Keywords: ACTION, SIGN, INFO, DECISION, REQUEST, COORD 2. Bottom Line Up Front (BLUF). Lead your emails with a short, staccato statement that declares…
> use active voice, so it’s clear who is doing the action. Using the active voice is neither necessary nor sufficient for clarity as to "who is doing the action". Just make sure it is in fact clear, and write as understandably as you're able. It's true that sometimes people use the passive voice inappropriately, but that's no reason to mangle your writing to avoid it.
> Instead of “The factory was bombed by an F18,” military professionals would say, “An F18 bombed the factory.”
That also rings true with (5) of George Orwells advice on good english writing [1]
(1) Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
(2) Never use a long word where a short one will do.
(3) If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
(4) Never use the passive where you can use the active.
(5) Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
(6) Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.
===
[1] George Orwell - Politics and the English Language
http://www.orwell.ru/library/essays/politics/english/e_polit...
Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Can you provide guidance on where I should focus? Should be the call to action/last sentence instead of "Lemme know" (I read that as passive-aggressively asking for a follow up? > because we have a dependency on Vendor ABC completing a change to their web service. This is impacting the commitment to my team on Feature 123 because we are near the end of our sprint. Too many words. Saying that vendor ABC is completin…
"lemme know" isn't passive-agressive, it's a clear request. you've got to sandwich the information you are providing inbetween two copies of the request: - start with the request, so the recipient knows why they are reading the main content of the email before they start - give them all the information that you can to help them respond - and then end with the request again so it's clear what you actually need and the…
That e-mail should have been written in a style where "yes" could be a sufficient answer to the "lemme know" if the supervisor agrees, and currently it's not.
Here's the next rule for you: DO NOT TOP POST Seriously, posting inline is easier to write and read and makes your email more clear. You don't have to wrangle your words to make it clear what part of their email you're replying to. If you don't need to refer to anything they said, delete the whole email and just put in a couple of words alone. Stop top posting!
I've worked at four companies over ten years. Everyone at all four companies top posts exclusively. Bottom posting is a good way to be branded "that weirdo who can't follow standard procedure". In the business world, this old Japanese proverb applies: "The nail that sticks up gets hammered down."
Thanks News.YC.com
I started to follow this approach [1] 6 month ago and it is amazing how much clearer my own thoughts in communication have become. 1. Subjects with keywords. The subject clearly states the purpose of the email, and specifically, what you want them to do with your note. Keywords: ACTION, SIGN, INFO, DECISION, REQUEST, COORD 2. Bottom Line Up Front (BLUF). Lead your emails with a short, staccato statement that declares…
so try to fit all content in one pane, so the recipient doesn’t have to scroll Oh no, have we introduced "the fold" into emails too, after a decade of forlornly trying to persuade people it doesn't exist on the web?