Power Etiquette

Chapter 5

Electronic Communication

Electronic communication has greatly increased our ability to keep in touch and the speed with which we can share information. However, with voice messages, fax, e-mail (electronic mail), pagers, and regular mail (dubbed “snail mail” due to it’s relatively slow delivery in relation to e-mail), we often feel overburdened by the responsibility of responding to so much communication quickly.

The average businessperson sends and receives a total of about ninety messages a day. The same message may be sent several ways to make sure it gets through. Interruptions and the demand for an immediate reply are becoming overwhelming. E-mail, fax, phone, and postal mail messages pile up. The idea of saving time by using quick ...