The Tendo View

A big part of my job is to consult on, create, evaluate, and distribute content. As such, I spend a lot of time writing about content. Some days, however, it seems as though a disproportionate amount of that time is spent trying to communicate what I think/recommend/need in a clear, emotionally neutral way to coworkers, clients, vendors—and yes, even my family—via email.

My default setting is “direct” (those who know me would probably say “blunt”), so in order to ensure my email does not unintentionally offend, I often put them through a “bitch-check.” But starting today, that’s going to change.

Julie Jares just sent me a link to a product called ToneCheck. Developed by Lymbix, ToneCheck is an email plugin that “ensures your tone is clearly communicated and understood before you hit the Send button.”

Genius.

ToneCheck evaluates the language in your emails, assigning “questionable” phrases one of eight Emotional Ratings that range from affection/friendliness to humiliation/shame. Users can edit their settings to accommodate their tolerances for negative or positive language so your emails will still sound like you—just less offensive.

Check it out.