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18Go Easy on the CC

Too often, too many e-mails find their way onto the desktops of unsuspecting colleagues who don’t really need to be in the loop on this or that conversation.

The ease of CCing (carbon copying/courtesy copying) a coworker or employee makes it temping to throw caution to the wind and communicate at large. If you want to be thought of as a model of e-mail restraint, resist this temptation, and use the CC function with caution. A few things to keep in mind include:

A CC message works best on a need-to-know basis. If a second (third, or fourth) person needs to be updated, or informed of the information being sent to your main recipient, then the CC function works well. For example: You are e-mailing the companypicnic team leader ...