I've just finished reading "Who Moved My Blackberry" by Martin Lukes with Lucy Kellaway which is a hugely funny dig at the corporate world and electronic communication.
It shows the fallout of sending delicate emails to the wrong people, what can happen when you align yourself to the wrong side even when you suspect all is not as it should be, and the perils of letting your Blackberry get into mischievous hands. Totally unlike the book "Who Moved My Cheese" by Dr Spencer Johnson (www.amazon.co.uk - oe3.99), which could do with falling into more hands!
I know there's lots of negativity around communicating by email but I love it. I haven't got a Blackberry but I do have wireless internet so I can do all my emails in bed if the fancy takes me - yes, OK, sometimes it does! As I see it, it's all about how you use it. It's great for setting up meetings, keeping in touch with people when you haven't always got time to phone, or even making arrangements for a verbal chat.
I think the negative publicity kicks in when it's used as a distraction. It can aid procrastination and stop you from making decisions. It can help you put off jobs that you should be dealing with. It can become an obsession when you can't stop checking your email to see if you have new messages, or it can make you feel driven as you feel you can't switch off from it.
Like many people, I use email to aid my business but have become a bit obsessed with it on occasions instead of sorting out the real issue. When you realise how much time can be wasted without achieving anything it's quite a shock, and time to take stock.
Only checking emails at certain times, having a "must do" list of other things, and adopting a more relaxed attitude to it are all strategies that are good for keeping it under control. After all, if someone wants to contact you in a hurry, they'll use the phone.
Oh, and maybe not taking your laptop and/or Blackberry to bed with you is also a good strategy!
Dammit! I'm still saying maybe -
Pam Stokes is a Business & Personal Development Coach. Besides coaching, she provides interactive online programmes for busy people, supervises newly qualified and trainee coaches, runs workshops in stress management and a Diploma Course in NLP. Free downloads www.pamstokesassociates.co.uk [http://www.pamstokesassociates.co.uk]
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