Great Progress Reflection

What's in a subject line? Specifically an email subject line. No, this isn't a reflection on best email practices. Just the power of words.

You know how we often keep a dialog going via email by replying to the original one sent, creating a chain of emails?

Well, these past couple of weeks, I have realized the power of the innocuous "Subject:" as things were flying into my inbox.

One chain reads "Great Progress!" and has been volleyed back and forth a few times in the past month. It made me smile each time.

Then I remembered back to last year, having a volley back and forth over a couple of weeks with the line "I was shot me down in less than 24 hours." The emotional weight of that subject line, despite the discussion becoming more hopeful in the content exchanged in the emails, was palpable. My heart sank each time I received it back.

I finally started a new thread with the title "More Positive Subject." Ha.

Reflection: The next time you send an email with a good chance of a "back-and-forth", how do you want the individual receiving it to feel before it's ever opened? How do you want to feel receiving it back? What can you put in the subject line to support that?

This is a grand experiment. By being more intentional with our subject lines, we can influence the emotional tone of our email exchanges. I'm excited to see what results (while still maintaining the best email etiquette possible 😉).

Let me know what you discover.