Mistakes in sending emails which we should avoid

There are many ways to send an email and while sending an email precautions to be taken to avoid some mistakes which will irritate the receiver of the mail. 

Let us see how to avoid such mistakes:

1. Reply All

This is one of those buttons that we like to hit so that everyone is kept in the ‘loop’, the problem is not everyone needs to be kept in the loop, nor do they want to be. It is fine to hit reply all, but be sure to edit the list of people that you are replying to so only those needed in the conversation stay in the email chain. If you are even in doubt about when to use reply all, don’t use it. 

It is better to forward an email to someone later on then to waste 50 peoples time reading email that they don’t care about.

2. Emails with unwanted CC field

Let me tell you about the CC field, it is used to keep people in the loop that need to be kept in the loop. What it is not for is to be used as a way to show me that you are doing your job, or to ask me to do something. When I get an email that I have been CC’d in and somewhere in that message there is a task you want me to do – 90% of the time I miss that task.The reason is simple:I don’t read emails I am CC’d in past the subject line. 

If you want someone to respond or act on an email you send ,make sure that he/she is in the ‘TO’ field.

3. Adding JPG of My Company Logo

It is really awesome that you figured out how to embed your company logo in your email signature, but I know who you are and what your company logo looks like.  Don’t waste bandwidth sending me email attachments of your logo.

Further it really irritates me when I go to look for emails that you sent me a file in – every email you send me has an attachment. 

4. Lengthy contact information

We all have those fancy email signatures that include our contact information and maybe even a vCard, they definitely say our name and title. These are great for people who don’t know you, but when you are corresponding with other people in your office and regular contacts ,your first name will suffice.

5. Stop With the Cryptic Subject

We need to tell people what the email is about in the subject line, so that they know if they need to open it now or not. For instance instead of saying “Report”

as your subject how about put the actual subject in – “Please Review My TPS Report” so that  I know whether to read that now or later. 

6. Sending Large Files

Most people  never look at the file size that they are sending to people, they just know that if it bounces back they can’t send it as is. I would ask that if your email is over 3mb please send me a file link so that I can download it faster. 

There are many  services out there that do this, many that are so fast and easy you will be amazed. Sending and downloading large files over email is not what the protocols were designed for, and they are agonizingly slow – help yourself out and use a service like Droplr, file sharing, etc.

7. Capitalization

If you send me an email in all caps I will assume you are yelling at me and take my damn sweet time responding. Likewise if you send me an email in all lowercase I will assume that you couldn’t care less about the email you sent; resulting in me taking my own time responding. Typos and grammar problems abound, but we all know how to properly capitalize an email, so don’t be lazy.

8. Keep It Short

It is really great that you like details, but I don’t have time for them. Tell me what I need to know and what you need from me.

Don’t waste my time asking about the weather or how business is going. Being concise in emails can often lead to people thinking that you don’t have the time for them – I am not talking about one line email responses (ala Steve Jobs), just say what you need to say in a clear and concise manner. This helps people better understand you and makes you look smart.

9. Legal Notices and Printing Notices

Drop the legal notice, it is just dumb amd makes you look paranoid. Drop the “be kind to the environment and don’t print this email” notices because it is just rude. 

If I need to print the email I will, otherwise assume it is filed away on my computer never to be revisited.

10. Spamming people with dumb jokes that they might not appreciate

This is the biggest email irritation. I hate it when people I don't send email jokes to, keep sending me email jokes that they think are 'relevant' to me. If I send you regular emails including jokes, I have that kind of relationship with you and it is fine to respond accordingly. If not, it would be smart to take a hint and stop bothering me - smart people don't care for the hidden messages

and crude jokes under business-like headings. Understand your audience and mark them in accordingly.

(Source: An email received from a friend )

Eye Health and Cataract Surgery

What is Cataract?

A cataract is a clouding of the lens inside the eye which leads to a decrease in vision. It is the most common cause of blindness and is conventionally treated with surgery. Visual loss occurs because opacification of the lens obstructs light from passing and being focused on to the retina at the back of the eye.

It is most commonly due to biological aging but there are a wide variety of other causes. Over time, yellow-brown pigment is deposited within the lens and this, together with disruption of the normal architecture of the lens fibers, leads to reduced transmission of light, which in turn leads to visual problems.

Those with cataracts commonly experience difficulty in appreciating colors and changes in contrast, driving, reading, recognizing faces, and coping with glare from bright lights

What are the Signs and Symptoms of cataract?

Signs and symptoms vary depending on the type of cataract, though there is considerable overlap.Many patients' first symptoms are strong glare from lights and small light sources at night, along with reduced acuity at low light levels People with nuclear sclerotic or brunescent cataracts often notice a reduction of vision. Those with posterior supcapsular cataracts usually complain of glare as their major symptom.

The severity of cataract formation, assuming that no other eye disease is present, is judged primarily by visual acuity test. The appropriateness of surgery depends on a patient's particular functional and visual needs and other risk factors, all of which may vary widely.

What is the main cause of Cataract?

Age is the most common cause. Lens proteins denature and degrade over time and this process is accelerated by diseases such as diabetes and hypertension. With the passage of time, environmental factors including toxins, radiation and UV light have an accumulative effect. These effects are worsened by the loss of protective and restorative mechanisms due to alterations in gene expression and chemical processes within the eye.

Treatment- Cataract Surgery:

Cataract is treated by Cataract Surgery.Cataract surgery is the removal of the natural lens of the eye (also called "crystalline lens") that has developed an opacification, which is referred to as a cataract. Metabolic changes of the crystalline lens fibers over time lead to the development of the cataract and loss of transparency, causing impairment or loss of vision. . During cataract surgery, a patient's cloudy natural lens is removed and replaced with a synthetic lens to restore the lens's transparency

(Source:Wikipedia)

What Happens During Cataract Surgery?

During cataract surgery, the cloudy lens is removed or cleaned out and replaced by a clear man made lens. 

Most cataract surgeries are done with a technique called phacoemulsification (FAY-co-ee-mul-sih-fih-CAY-shun), also called "small cut cataract surgery." The cut can be smaller because the harder center section of the lens is liquefied and then vacuumed out.

Under local anesthesia, a surgeon performing phacoemulsification makes a small opening on the side of your cornea. A device that sends out ultrasound vibrations is inserted into the eye and breaks the lens into small pieces. The fragments are then removed by suction through the small cut in the eye. 

Your eye doctor may use a laser to make the cut. The hope is that a more precise cut will further improve recovery from cataract surgery.

After the cataract is removed, the surgeon usually replaces it with a new, manmade lens called an intraocular lens or IOL. This procedure is called "intraocular lens implantation."

The IOL is clear plastic, acrylic, or silicone with an optical power chosen by the surgeon to help restore normal vision. This lens is permanent and needs no special care.

The IOL focuses light onto the retina to help improve your vision. Still, even if your natural lens is replaced with an intraocular lens, you probably will need a new eyeglass prescription. However, most people can see fairly well at a distance without glasses after modern cataract surgery with a cataract lens replacement.

Cataract surgery is usually done as an outpatient procedure in an operating room, so you don't have to stay in the hospital. The actual surgery usually lasts less than an hour.

Some people prefer to be awake during the surgery. A sedative may be given and numbing drops are placed on the eyes. Talk to your surgeon about your preference.

Doctors usually won't remove cataracts in both eyes at the same time. If you need both eyes done, you will be scheduled for separate surgeries, usually a few weeks apart.

Is Cataract Surgery Safe?

Nearly 98% of all cataract surgeries are completed each year without serious complications. Though this type of surgery is very safe, you should always discuss the risks of surgery with your eye surgeon.

What Can I Expect After Cataract Surgery?

After cataract surgery, it is normal to feel mild irritation. Your doctor may recommend that you take an over-the-counter pain reliever such as acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin). You may also have mild tearing and be slightly sensitive to light for a short time following cataract surgery. You can wear dark glasses to help with the light sensitivity. 

For a few weeks after cataract surgery, you will need to take medication in the form of eye drops to aid healing and prevent infection. Your surgeon may want you to avoid very strenuous activities for a short period after surgery, but most normal activities need not be restricted following cataract surgery.

For further details pls visit  

http://www.webmd.com/eye-health/eye-health-cataract-surgery

Importance of Washing Hands

 

Are you a person that takes care to properly wash your hands? Well, if you answered yes then you are one of a worldwide minority of people who wash their hands.   Surveys conducted in the United States suggest that while 2/3 of people do wash their hands, 95 percent of them are washing them wrong. In Britain, one experiment found that while 99 percent of the people tested admitted to washing their hands after using the facilities, a camera revealed that only 32% of the men and 64% of the women actually washed their hands with soap and water.  You may be asking 'why did the test subjects lie?' Well the only viable answer to that question is that they sincerely believed that their hands weren't dirty enough to spread disease or infect. But after viewing these unexpected places that are dirtier than your toilet, we promise you will never not wash your hands (or lie about it) again!

Keyboards: Your computer keyboard, yes the one you are typing on right now, can have up to 200 times more bacteria than a toilet seat. During a test of the equipment in a busy London office, microbiologists found a few keyboards that were so dirty that they were classified as 150 times the acceptable limit for bacteria. The most common bacteria found on the keyboards was Staphylococcus, which lives in our noses, throats, hair and skin. This is the bacteria that spreads when we touch our faces or sneeze into our hands, and fail to wash them after. Many of the items on this list are here because they are heavily ridden with staph.

Restaurant menus: Of course, with everyone touching, sneezing or coughing on the menu in front of them, it's no wonder that they usually carry 100 time more bacteria than a restaurant toilet seat. In fact, a large percentage of food-borne diseases like E. coli spread in restaurants when someone has contaminated hands.

Door knobs: It's not secret that hands are one of the dirtiest parts of the body, so when we touch a door knob, we are spreading all of our germs and then some onto the handle for the next unsuspecting person to pick up.

Your Pillow: Believe it or not, but your pillow is dirtier than a toilet seat! Dead skin cells, dust mites, spores, and other body secretions remain on the pillow you rest your head on every night. Therefore, it is important to change pillow cases once a week to ensure optimal hygiene.

Money: In a recent study in the United Kingdom, it was found that 26 percent of hands have fecal matter on them, as well as 14 percent of banknotes and 10 percent of credit cards. That means any of the money you handle could infect you with the common cold, the flu or even stomach poisoning.

Kitchen sponges: Everything that you make or do in the kitchen involves some form of bacteria. Yet what is meant to be a cleaning vehicle may actually be the dirtiest thing in your house! It has 10 million bacteria per square inch, making a quarter of million times dirtier than your toilet seat.

Cellphones: Your cellphone is packed with bacteria from your hands, face and everything in between. Cellphones are about 10 times dirtier than a toilet seat because we are touching them and spitting into them all day long.

Ice: A recent study of fast food restaurants in the United States found that 70 percent of the ice served has more bacteria than the water in the toilet bowl. We'll take our soda lukewarm!

Toothbrush: Although it may only enter your mouth, your toothbrush is ridden with bacteria. Research has found that one tooth brush can harbor more than 100 million bacteria, including dangerous E. coli bacteria, which can cause diarrhea, and staph. Make sure you change your brush on a regular basis!

Light switch: The light switch can have up to 217 bacteria per square inch, which means that every time you turn the light on and off, you could be exposed to dangerous bacteria that has accumulated there over time. Make sure that you clean the light switches regularly at your home and office with bleach! Remember, you should wash your hands thoroughly with antibacterial soap for a total of around 40 seconds to a minute. Make sure the soap reaches a rich lathery consistency before washing it off. If everyone washes their hands the way they should, it is predicted that over a million deaths from disease a year could be prevented. So for your good and the good of all, wash your hands responsibly