EMOTICON/EMOJI USE EXAMPLE:

Your project team has just been reprimanded by the boss for

missing a deadline. Your colleagues left the meeting grumbling

about being criticized in public after working nights and week-

ends, and you fear that morale will slip.

You could craft an inspirational message to soothe the

bruised egos and get the team's energy turned around in

positive direction. However, writing such a message could be

risky because world-weary teammates might just brush it off

as *happytalk" and resent you for trying to be a cheerlcader:

Alternatively, you could suggest that your colleagues

lighten up and stay focused on the ultimate goal of the proj-

ct. However, you already know char telling grumpy people ro

cheer up is a surefire way to make most of them even grumpier

Instead, you opt for a quick bit of gentle sarcasm

designed to help release the negative emotions in a collegial

way When you ger back to your desk, you write the following

instant message

Well, let's pick up the pleces of our shattered ives

and move on -/

'The over-the top phrasing is a subtle way to remind excryon

that the criticism wasn't all that traumatic, and that wink.

ing emoticon tells everyone to lighten up without actually

saying so- The apparent sarcasm connects with people who

are marinating in their negative emotions, but it's really a pep

talk disguised as sarcasm.

Then you worry that the emoticon will seem unprotes-

sional, so you replace it with a simple period:

Well, let's pick up the pieces of our shattered lives

and move on.

Oops. That one minor change to make the message more pro-

fessional turned it into a statement of resigned sadness. You

search your keyboard for any acceptable symbol that might

heip:

Well, let's pick up the pieces of our shattered lives

ano move ont

Great, now you've managed ro sound bitter and demanding

at the same time.

Given the difficulry of communicating emotional nuance

in lean media such as messaging and email, are emoticons

really all that bad? The answer depends on the situation, your

relationship with your audience, and the company culture.

Until emoticons become more widely accepted in business

communication, it's wise to err on the side of caution.

CAREER APPLICATIONS

: As a manager, what reaction would you have to job appli-

cants who use cmoticons in their email messages?

-Are emoticons just a generational difference in perspec-

tive, or is there more to the issuc? Explain your answer,

n Chapters 7 and 8 , you read about digital and ocial media. Given that digital and social media are ecoming more and more important in the vorkplace, I'd like you to consider the following: 1. Is it ever appropriate to use emoticons, emoji, or similar graphical devices in an email at work? - In addition to considering the related discussion in the text and your experiences, please also take a look at the following example. 2. How important is it to keep to conventional grammar rules when writing business messages on Twitter or on a corporate blog? n Chapters 7 and 8 , you read about digital and ocial media. Given that digital and social media are ecoming more and more important in the vorkplace, I'd like you to consider the following: 1. Is it ever appropriate to use emoticons, emoji, or similar graphical devices in an email at work? - In addition to considering the related discussion in the text and your experiences, please also take a look at the following example. 2. How important is it to keep to conventional grammar rules when writing business messages on Twitter or on a corporate blog