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In this 21st century (and for a while), I think one of the greatest productivity skills is to compose emails as quickly and efficiently as possible. As a leader for different organizations for many years, I've grown accustomed to the different "voices" of emails I get, and it's important to switch from a professional voice, to a very casual voice to the next, as well as being efficient in your emails. The following is just a brief summary of some of the qualities of the leader should develop.

1) Changing his/her own voice. Many of my colleagues are shocked how different my emails can be when referring someone who is higher up, versus emailing some of my officers or even club members. Going through "Inbox (10) on Gmail" from at least 7 different people can be a pain, especially when you haven't developed a strict voice in your compositions. Given that you're already good at formalities, you should get used to switching from Boss mode to Friend mode every email after.

2) Email Signature: One of pet peeves are horrible email signatures. ESPECIALLY that ones that say "Thanks, *several lines down* [Their name signature]". I was arguing and was frustrated with a coworker the other day, and on every email, it's signed "Thanks". Excuse me? Not something I want to read when I'm arguing. Also, even when I do something "good" and beneficial, it's automatically written "Thanks"--which really defeats the purpose. Please, just keep it simple: Name, Degree/College, Website, Contact info.

3) Know what you're trying to say: Keep it simple, and crisp. Shouldn't be hard, but for some emails I get from leaders, they don't get it. Emails (I'm talking about important emails) aren't meant to be books, novels, or any time of literature, nor are they supposed to disturb, influence, persuade, make people cry, so forth . Cut the chase, and GIMME THE INFO. That goes for when you're sending emails. When you click the "compose" button, you should know exactly how you're formatting your email, and how you envision your recipient is going to react towards it. (This also speeds up your replying speed)

4) Searching for the treasure: Most people DO send a long, eloquently written compositions as an email. It's inevitable; people do it. That's why I read the Subject and the first paragraph (so I know what the email is about), and the last paragraph (since most people summarize what they've written, and most details about the next meeting time, place, etc. is given here). Be efficient! When you have time, go back and read the email.

5) Be Organized: If you're writing about the details about the next meeting, instead of "The next meeting is at Barrows, Room 126, on Thursday, October 6th, at 7:00 PM to 8:30PM", write

126 Barrows

Thursday, Oct. 6

7pm-8:30pm

6) Follow up/Replying back: A good leader will always reply back within 24 hours. You should too. I used to send emails in one minute (since email notifications went to my phone) but since that increased stress because of the number of important emails I get throughout the day, I have decided to send a lot of emails in a given time--all emails are replied to are read at least by 4 hours. Also, if you email someone an important question and aren't getting a response, you should definitely follow up by forwarding the email that you sent previously, and basically re-asking the question and a polite manner. It really doesn't hurt to email people back asking for an answer, especially if it's important.

7) Lastly, proofread once. You should already be a good typer to be able to write an email without many errors. But sometimes, a glitch (not the computer's fault) does appear, and you need to fix it. Confidently proofread once, and you should be good to go!

These simple guidelines should get you a good start.

One email-related tip: Take advantage of integrating Google Docs and Google Forms onto your emails. They do miracles.