That said, I promised my wife that I am going to try to disconnect, get away and enjoy our vacation as much as possible. So, I’m going to experiment with something new. I’m going to leave the decision in your hands:
So, professionals are expected to use out-of-office email autoresponders whenever they will be out of reach for a fairly long time.
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I guess it’s relatively minor, but I once emailed a local government official with a question about building permits (just as a citizen, not work-related) at about 10am on a Monday and got an out-of-office reply stating she’d be back “Monday” with no date. So I had no idea whether she was already back and hadn’t turned off the message yet, in which case, not urgent, I’ll wait, or was out for a week, in which case, I’d like to ask someone else. Not a big inconvenience, but it was so illogical not to give a date that it really drove me crazy
Yes, this, and when people use OOO message as a “do not disturb” but then email you back right away. That’s not how OOO or email works!
I didn’t actually put that in my maternity leave out-of-office, but it is what I did when I got back.
Happy Holidays, I hope this email finds you well. I am taking advantage of the holiday season to get some much-needed time with family and friends. I will not be able to respond to any work-related emails until after Jan. 4, 2020. If you have a time …
When you’ve finally powered your way through that seemingly endless to-do list and are ready to check out of work mode once and for all, there’s one final thing you need to take care of: setting your out-of-office response.
Eh, figuratively. It’s like saying I’ve gone to lunch even though I’m still right here eating at my desk–the point is that I’m unavailable to do any work.
I’m with you, honestly! When the end was “she’s So great” and not “she’s so [sime negative adjective]” I was actually surprised. I thought it was annoying and condescending and all around extra. But I guess I see why some people (including the ooo boss) would think it’s funny.
Our office will be closed on [date] for the public holiday and will reopen again as normal on [date]. Contact details for emergency can be found on our website.
Is your email urgent? If so, you should probably call [Name] at [phone number], and they will assist you. They aren’t in the sunshine – they’re still at work.
You might receive multiple emails from coworkers and clients if you’re not specific about your absence dates, which will clog your inbox and make it hard for you to remain productive when you get back.
I try to substitute “parental leave” for “maternity leave” whenever possible. Trying to normalize it as a benefit to all employees (at my company) rather than a special lady-vacation.
In Outlook Mail, you can set an auto-reply or "vacation message" on your account. This will automatically send a message back to anyone who emails you to let them know that you are on vacation, out of the office, or otherwise unable to respond.
I’ve done this a couple times: on the 3rd sick day when it’s all I can do to just set an OOO, and I’m tired of updating the dates and feel like I’m never going to get better.
With these tips, you’ll be able to write your next auto-reply message, for holidays or other reasons.
I’m with you, honestly! When the end was “she’s So great” and not “she’s so [sime negative adjective]” I was actually surprised. I thought it was annoying and condescending and all around extra. But I guess I see why some people (including the ooo boss) would think it’s funny.