Are you email flirting in the office? Take a look at our top 5 e-mance tips

Nov 15th 2012, 20:20 | By Sarah Jordan | Add comment

It's easy to press send, but it's hard to take back an embarrassing comment...

294 billion emails are sent everyday, making them the most popular form of communication on the planet. We send serious, funny, snappy and short emails, but have you ever wondered what would happen if someone dived into your inbox and had a look around?

If the idea fills you with horror you're probably a 'press send now, think later' kinda' girl, which is fine, but you're probably the kinda' girl who sends wink smiley faces to the hot guy in the office too. Right?

To save you any future mortifying moments here's five things to be aware of before you start e-flirting, or worse, an e-mance...

1. When you're face to face with someone you can read their body language, assess their eye contact and really get a sense of whether your office crush fancies you or not. Emails can be misread, taken the wrong way or simply ignored so don't pin your whole future happiness on his responses.

2. You can be more eloquent and witty via email (because you've got more time to think about your reply), but it can also make us prone to exaggeration and white lies.

In emails we can wear Gucci instead of Primark, read Austin instead of Rowling and visit theatres rather than watch X Factor. Suddenly you're two months into a burgeoning relationship and you've climbed Everest, swum the Channel, volunteered at a soup kitchen and speak five languages. Try explaining that on a first date!

3. E-flirting is probably one of the most distracting things ever. When you're crafting the perfect response to his suggestive message or twiddling your thumbs waiting for him to reply YOU'RE NOT ACTUALLY WORKING. Just make sure your boss doesn't catch you in the act.

4. Always double and triple check that you've not CC'ed someone in to your email or accidentally pressed 'reply all'. No one wants to read your attempts at office innuendo and you will never live it down if you've said something embarrassing.

5. Remember you can't un-send an email, so make sure you're happy with what you're saying before you click the magic button. As a rule of thumb - if you wouldn't say it in real life, don't say it in an email.

Author Julie Lawson believes in the power of email so much that she's created a whole novel written in back-and-forth emails between lead character Allie Rainsbury and her office eye-candy David.

Soon Allie realises that she's been too reliant on her inbox and discovers that there's more to the people around her than their email addresses.