Pushing the email envelope: Top 3 tips for Boomers

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We Boomers pride ourselves on our ability to stay on the cutting-edge of everything from style and technology to intergenerational communications strategies. That’s why on any given day, you will find me Skyping the grandkids, receiving my daily dose of news via RSS feed, listening to my iPod and checking my phone for texts from my friends.

But there are limits, even for those of us who have thrown away our hairspray and pantyhose and stopped saying things like “this is groovy.”

I bumped up against some of my limitations recently, in what can only be categorized as my lame attempt to incorporate some cutting-edge tips from a recently-published book into my work life. It’s titled How Not to Act Old, by Pamela Redmond Satran, and my encounter with this book was sobering.

For instance, Satran advises us to “drop dated vocabulary.” I already told you I no longer use groovy. I figured this out for myself after watching several seasons of “So You Think You Can Dance,” and observed the mature judges on the panel getting crusty with the hip hoppers and crumpers. (Crusty is a good thing.) If they can say things like “That’s sick” and “You’re phat” — and tears of joy spring to the dancers eyes, I figure that’s a cool new way to give a compliment. I’m game to give it a try.

That said, understanding that the rules of communication have changed — and putting them into practice — are two different things. Take email, for instance. Imagine that I am at work, wanting to communicate effectively with the younger folks in my cohort. Trying out the new vocabulary, here’s how the email might read: “Hi all, I wanted you to know how bad I think you’re doing. The copy you just gave me is sick. All I can think of is how dope I think you all are. Thanks, Carol.”

You’re right. Wouldn’t go over the way I intended. In fact the reference to “dope” could well receive a return email, something about one of them consulting their lawyer.

But as far as I was pushing the envelope, it wasn’t far enough, for according to Satran, the use of a conventional salutation, complete with punctuation, is also lame. Younger people, we are informed, just get right to the point. Even my “Hi all” and “Thanks, Carol” date me. In fact, I stand both accused and defiant before a number of the top tips Satran provides in an excerpt of her book that we ran awhile ago.

Rather than take the time to repeat and wrangle tip by tip, let me — aha — just get right to the point. Building on Satran, here are my own top three tips for not acting old in work-related emails:

1. When it comes to email, stay away from trendy vocabulary of all kinds.
   Just keep it simple and straight — and worry more about using as few words as possible than sounding like you’re cool, awesome or heaven forbid groovy.
2. Match your salutations and sign-off styles to reflect your correspondent’s format.
   You get an email that skips the salutation, you skip yours. You get the full regalia, complete with “Dear” and “Sincerely,” let it rip in return. Default position (i.e. you are initiating the email communication): push the envelope in the direction of less is more. For instance, challenge yourself to skip the salutation and just sign-off simply with just your name. But if you just can’t do it, I understand.
3. Let the email chain die a natural death.
   Once everything’s been said and especially if you’ve been thanked, you can just stop. No need to reply with a return thanks.

So those are my top three tips. Thanks for taking the time to read this.

Most sincerely yours,
Carol