The Curse of the Reply-All

I love the reply-all. It’s so great. In the span of 10 minutes this morning, I had approximately 50 emails arrive fill my inbox as someone used a distribution list with over 5900 recipients. The emails are still rolling in.

Reply-all should be a button requiring multiple layers of security, including nothing less than a VPN token you need to enter before giving you the privilege of using this powerful and potentially disruptive function (but one that can be extremely comedic).

Reply-all brings out the best and worst in colleagues. Let’s examine the different types of people and their reactions to the reply-all:

The Culprit: rarely does the individual who made the mistake of using reply-all respond, except in the case of trying to save face with an apology. You have to feel for them – everyone makes mistakes but unfortunately theirs was a public one.

The Joker: I love this person. Adding levity to something annoying like 50+ emails in a short period of time is tricky – you can quickly become Public Enemy #1 but if done correctly, we’ll print out your email response and post it on the lunch room Wall of Fame.

The Offended: this person is super annoyed by the reply-all and they’re not afraid to show it. Their sarcastic email is usually laced with a tiny dose of venom. They aren’t afraid to use large coloured fonts, maybe even CAPS (gasp!) with multiple exclamation marks.

The Instructor: at least one person will reply-all recapping what’s happening, who’s receiving this note, why this shouldn’t happen and how we shouldn’t do this again. They too may use large coloured fonts with multiple exclamation marks with a screen shot for added emphasis.

The Please Don’t Reply-All: I also love this person - why they will reply-all to request no one else reply-all is beyond me. Aren't you contributing to the problem? Why should you get the last say? Your reply-all makes The Joker want to reply-all (again).

The BCC’er: someone is bound to reply-all but will put the entire distro in BCC. It’s a valiant attempt but it’s yet another reply-all and the likelihood anyone is reading your email that is forty-four deep in the chain is rare.

Please Remove Me: I liken this person to someone grasping at straws. They are obviously frustrated but have a (polite) plea for help – “please take me off this distro!” Sorry. It’s out of control. You’re along for the ride now, even if you include a winky face. ;)

The Do-Nothing: Other than The Joker, this person handles this situation the best. Sure, the reply-all can be annoying and possibly disruptive but the only real way to make the madness stop is to do nothing.

Taking a deep breath is the best prescription. Take a deep breath before you become The Culprit but also before you choose to become someone other than The Do-Nothing. Sometimes it’s best to walk away from your email. I’m sure there are some cat photos on the internet worth uncovering.