My new latest obsesssion: Reacher on Amazon Prime.
It’s entertaining and daft in equal measure.
Based on the eponymous books, its hero, Jack Reacher, is a gigantic muscle-bound ex-military cop turned drifter.
He attracts trouble and women wherever he goes.
Reacher owns no possessions apart from a toothbrush, yet still has perfect hair and a perma tan. (And apparently no body odour.)
His catchphrase,used at least once per episode, is:
‘In an investigation, assumptions kill.’
And for all Reacher’s daftness, he’s got a point.
In emails, assumptions can be fatal too.
Imagine you’ve emailed a senior colleague with a request, but it’s been a week and they still haven’t replied.
What goes through your mind? Maybe it’s that they…
don’t care
don’t want to do what you’ve asked
are being rude or difficult
Or perhaps you turn it on yourself:
‘Oh no! I’ve p*ssed them off!’
‘They clearly don’t like me…’
‘I’m not important enough to warrant a reply…’
It’s easy to make assumptions.
But we rarely know people’s motivations. They might not care, but they could just be rushed off their feet.
The guessing game isn’t productive.
Instead, look at what YOU’VE done to get your them to jump into action. (Or not.)
Ask yourself these questions with our BAM! method.
Was your message:
1. BOLD: Did you clearly, politely and assertively ask for what you wanted? (Or did you beat around the bush/bury your ask deep in the middle of a paragraph?)
2. ACHIEVABLE: Was your request easy to carry out? Did the recipient have the authority/budget to do it?
3. MOTIVATIONAL: Was there an incentive for them to reply? Was there a curiosity itch they needed to scratch? A gain to be made or pain to be avoided?
So stop with the guessing game and give the BAM! method a go in your next email.
(And try Reacher too, but don’t judge me…)
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