You're really not that funny.

Trying to be funny in your client emails?  You are probably not succeeding. From Psychology Today:

[I]n a series of studies, participants were only able to accuratelycommunicate sarcasm and humor in barely half—56 percent—of the emailsthey sent. What's worse, most people had no idea that they weren'tmaking themselves understood....

The fact that we're usually very good at makingourselves understood is also what trips us up in the email domain."We're all so adept at processing nonverbal cues that we do it withoutthought, in a happy-go-lucky way." So much so, that we often don'trecognize ambiguous meanings, like in that dashed-off email that couldbe read two different ways."

Tips?  Reread your emails, aloud if possible, and listen closely for ambiguity.  For important emails, compose them, take a break, and come back and re-read before you hit send.

Via Guy: