A shared email is like a public space, it requires cultural norms and a few rules. This blog introduces these and builds on a series discussing Google’s products and how they can help a Small Non-Profit (SNP).

Why Write Rules? 

There are many parallels between a GDrive and a GMail account; this includes the need for clear ‘Rules of Engagement’. Like a drive, without some agreement the inbox can quickly become a useless dumping ground of never cleared messages. Worse still, because GMail interacts with the outside, it creates risks for the SNP.  

How to Write Rules

The second most important rule about writing rules is to start writing the rules. The most important rule is having a rule about how to change the rules. Tongue removed from my cheek, here is a more “rule’esque” list of rules:  

• Talk About (and Revise) the Rules. Unlike the Fight Club [1], talk about the rules, at least on an annual basis, with all individuals using the GMail. This will ensure newcomers know how to behave, prevent ‘behavioural drift’, and to keep the rules current and relevant.  
• Write the Rules Down. People use heuristic (short cuts) to be efficient and effective. They will reconstruct their memories to conform with their behaviour. Writing down and having a process to change the rules keeps them drifting – but in the right direction! 
• Rules Serve the Purpose. The rules are about saving time, reducing risk, and helping the SNP and are always subordinate to the SNP’s purpose.  
• Stay Friends and Colleagues. Change management, good behaviours, and effectiveness are important, but providing a good volunteer experience is more important.  

Email Principles 

Like the prior blog on a GDrive, we will start with some principles:  

1. Emailing the Tragedy of the Commons. A shared GMail account is a common space. Respect, a bit of discipline, and a few rules are needed to make it enjoyable to all.  
2. You “Ain’t” Got Mail. The SNP’s objective is for the Inbox and Sent folders to be emptied on a periodic basis (e.g. before every board meeting) by having the content processed. 
3. Labels, Not Folders. If you are an Outlook user, the biggest adjustment will be the concept of a folder (a bucket) has been replaced with a Label (a tag). Microsoft users, let go of the folder and embrace the tag!  
4. Labels and Years Are Your Friends. The Year Label is the most useful as it preserves and tells when this email was relevant to the SNP. The ‘Year’ tag will reference all emails related to a time-period. They are also a handy way to purge emails.
5. Search Beats Structure. Although you can and it is tempting to create a zillion nested Labels, resist the urge and instead use a handful and the search functionality.  
6. They Call it a Subject for a Reason. The subject line should tell the story of the email, what was provided, what is being asked, who should do what – take control of the subject!

The Email in Action

Labels are how GMail structures emails. While this blog will not discuss how to manage Labels (see Further Reading), it will discuss how to apply the principles rules to a SNP. 

The Rules in Action

Rule 1: Process or Leave Un-Read. Whoever is the first person to see an email, will either process it (e.g. apply a label, let others know, respond to it, delete it, etc.) or leave it Un-Read. If you have opened the email and realized that someone else should deal with it, the closed envelope icon marks it Un-Read.  

Rule 2: Tag and Bag. For emails that fall into your area, action the email (reply, forward, delete, etc.) and then remove the Inbox Tag and apply the relevant label.   

Rules 3: Add Labels, Collectively. Labels are a collective resource and such need to be agreed upon in an open and transparent way. Add a label, but get it endorsed by the other GMail users. For example: 

• “I created a label for the Volunteer Appreciation we talked about at the last board meeting. I nested under the current year folder of 2098 or 2098/Volunteer-Event”. 
• “Is that okay and, if so, please use that label for this event”. 

Rule 4: Labels are Great, Fewer are Better. Most emails have a short shelf life. Don’t get too prescriptive with your labels as the email you are reading today will (probably) never be read again.

• A general category of ‘2098/Volunteer-Event’ is perfect. 
• ‘2098/Volunteer-Event/Food/Salads/Is-Jello-O-Salad-a-Food’ seems a bit excessive.  
• As a final guidance, labels are intended to get you to the general location. They are not intended as a comprehensive library card system. Remember, Search Beats Structure.  

Rule 4 part-A – Is Year Redundant? An email will end up with a Year label for when the email topic was completed. If it crosses from one year to another, use both or preferably the new year’s label.  

• Tagging an email with the Year may seem redundant but it helps to narrow an email’s search.  
• When people search, they often first time-contextualize it. For example, “… remember when we ran that even three years ago…”.   
• Often email chains are repetitive (the Annual General Meeting, XYZ-event, audit, etc.) and need the year context to help narrow a future search. 
• Finally, by categorizing it by year, you get to bury the past (with a year tag) and later exhume and delete it (e.g. after seven years).   

Rule 4 Part-B – Year Versus _Enduring. There are VERY FEW emails that are deserving of the tag “_Enduring”, the 0.01% scenario. 

• Examples of an enduring email could be a registration key for a website or a confirmation of incorporation. Received in 2083 but relevant for years to come so _Enduring worthy.  
• If an _Enduring email becomes irrelevant, move it into the current year folder (e.g. a website registration expires and a new one is issued). 
• Be able to defend the rationale behind labeling each enduring email noting that by default, it goes into the year folder.  

Rule 4 Part-C: Purge Periodically. Although Google is very generous with its space allocation, ten years from now you may be running out. This is where the year folder comes in handy – for deleting. Normally emails more than seven years old can be readily purged. Review the _Enduring folder as well to see if there are any stale emails in this folder. 

Rule 6: One Email and a Clear Subject. To help with the rules (labelling, purging, etc.), take control of the Subject Line.  

• A subject line of ‘I have a question…’ makes perfect sense to the person writing it but conveys only the most minimal amount of information.  
• Change it to something like ‘XYZ Society – Credit Card to Pay Membership Fee’.  
• If there are two subjects in the email that are relevant to different volunteers, consider splitting the email by responding with two different subject lines.  

Starting Point, Not the End 

If you have read this far you may be groaning – this is WAY TOO MUCH work. More than likely this is nothing like how you manage your own email. Unlike your own email account, a shared Gmail is a common space. A few courtesy rules will help to keep the inbox manageable and will ultimately reduce the stress and Burden of Volunteering.  

Whether you adopt all of the above or start slow, perhaps the most important thing is to talk about your GMail Inbox and how to manage it. As always, let me know if you have come up with better ways to manage your Inbox – I would love to know! 

References

1. Fight Club (film) – Wikiquote

Further Reading

• Create labels to organize Gmail – Computer – Gmail Help (google.com)
• Labels vs Folders: The Definitive Guide To Organizing Your Inbox | Blog | Hiver™ (hiverhq.com)
• How Do I Make a Folder in Gmail? Folders Vs. Labels – The Techie Senior
• Email Signature – More than Just your Address | Organizational Biology & Other Thoughts (myorgbio.org)
• ASK-ACTION Emails | Organizational Biology & Other Thoughts (myorgbio.org)