Composing an Email – “K Thx”

Here we find ourselves in the land of short-hand. Text messages and quick responses on social media platforms have almost negated our societies ability to compose an actual email. We have so many mediums for communication, but let’s be honest, everyone has an email address and it is still king. The importance of being able to communicate effectively over an email should not be overlooked.

Don’t get me wrong, I love being able to save time, to answer things quickly, and move on to the next thing. However, time and place is everything. Email is never the time nor the place. Just as you use kind verbal tones, avoid sentence fragmentation, and try to use good English speaking skills in a verbal conversation, so should we do the same when writing an email.

At the risk of making this chapter sound like a rant, I am “going there” because I think it’s too important to just pretend like sending a decent email isn’t a big deal. Everything we say with our mouth carries weight and importance. Does it not? Our words are most often a reflection of what is in our hearts (except for those times when we allow our emotions to jump in the way of what’s really in our hearts, thus hijacking the conversation). It’s a big deal to understand that how we compose an email, what we say and how we say it, is just as important as verbal communication, if not more so, because people can’t see the emotion on our faces over an email.

For instance, has someone ever asked you a loaded question via email and you take the time and respond beautifully, providing detailed information and helpful insight? You care enough to answer thoroughly and they either A. Didn’t respond to your email at all. or B. Responded with the infamous, “K. Thx.” For me, there is few things that irritate me more than that when it comes to digital communications. Is that how the person would respond if they were physically standing in front of you? Nope. Not likely. If they were standing there as you shared the helpful information, they probably wouldn’t simply stare at you and say nothing, and they probably wouldn’t just say, “K. Thx”. No, they would probably say something like, “Oh okay. That was really helpful. Thank you for that.” With that being said, how hard was that to type? It took all of 8 seconds and I’m not super fast at typing.

Answering someone with, “K. Thx” is always a fail. Period. Especially after someone just took the time to try and help you. That is just one example. Many of you might be thinking, “what’s the big deal? I’m sure people understand I’m in a hurry”. No, unfortunately, when you ignore someone or answer like that, you are displaying a lack of gratitude and basic respect. That reflects poorly on you and it can affect how people view you and answer you in the future. You can do better. Take the 6 extra seconds, it matters.

What about the ALL CAPS responses in emails? No. Never. Just don’t do that. Ever. What about answering with negative exclamation points? Bad idea. What are negative exclamation points you ask? I consider exclamation points to always be negative unless they are used in a positive and uplifting way like, “Great job!!!!!”. Never send anyone an email that says, “We need this done ASAP!!!!!!!!” There is no better way to make me respond to you more slowly that to send me a message like that. Instead try, “We are super pressed for time on this project. If you don’t mind, could you move this one to the top of your list?” Did it take more time to type that out? Yep. Was it worth it? Absolutely. I’m jumping on it right away every time.

Even though we are not sitting across from each other, we are still humans communicating with other humans. Take the time to treat people as you would want to be treated. Jesus himself said in Matthew 12:34, “Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.” Well, out of the abundance of the heart, so does your fingers. Make sure what you type reflects what’s truly in your heart. Failing to do so can come back to bite you in the butt. Trust me on that one.