It seems that in our world today, everything is electronic. We have viral videos, e-mail and online meetings. Books seem to have gone by the wayside. A whole new world exists within the internet and on the technological front. With that whole new world comes a whole new set of rules regarding electronic etiquette, how to be polite in an email and how best to communicate via the keyboard. The Hamster Revolution by Mike Song addresses best practices for email communication.

Personally, I rather enjoyed this book. I took a lot out of it, things that often get overlooked and possibly misinterpreted. Some excellent points that were addressed in this easy-to-read guidebook were:

• Using All Caps: in an effort to emphasize the importance of what we are saying, we often use ALL CAPS and in doing so, effectively end up yelling at our co-workers, clients or even worse, our boss. ALL CAPS are not needed in the business world for the most part and should be used with caution.
• Unnecessary Email Overload: As much as we want to reach out and say thank you for that file that arrived in a timely manner because we feel thanks are par for the course, the author outlines how by eliminating emails that really say nothing, we can save valuable time, days in fact, over the course of a year. I found this advice incredibly applicable.
• Priorities and Formatting: The author takes great care to outline an effective way to prioritize email. Without some rhyme or reason, emails end up stuck in our inbox with no hope of going anywhere else. Additionally, he outlines a very effective method of formatting an email that gets right to the point and is easy for recipients to get to the heart of the matter, quickly.
• Instant Messaging: Thought of often as a social waste of time in the business world, Mike Song shows how IM can be the key to getting quick replies and cutting down on email clutter when used properly. I found this section especially helpful.