I love that Twitter has 140 characters. Love, love, love it. Why?
People abuse emails in so many ways:
- Going on and on and on. Unless it is something I am directly responsible for, taking 15 minutes to read an email is not something I am going to prioritize. What can be communicated in 2 minutes over the phone takes me 300% longer to read and I may mis-understand the email after all of that.
- Everyone gets cc'd - this means I really won't pay attention to the tome.
- The action needed is typically buried somewhere in the middle of the email
- Email is used for conversations that should really be had in person - it encourages dysfunctional passivity and political maneuvering that usually only obfuscates the issue.
I've had a couple of interesting conversations recently with multiple people over multiple channels (some are Twitterers, some are not). The non-Twitter conversation is much more involved and I suppose some of that context is useful - but it sure isn't quick. The Twitter side of my conversation - short and to the point.
In an era of information overload, I appreciate the ability to zero in to the heart of the matter. As my example here shows, you can actually get a lot of information in - and link to anything that is supporting information.
My suggestion: Even if you don't Twitter - try limiting your emails to 140 characters for a week. If it is longer than that, pick up the phone, stop by someone's office, or provide back up information via a link.
Short is definitely sweet.
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