First, KUDOS! It is extremely important that you do have a high priority of not offending others. I think we have all been around reformed smokers or people who’ve lost a lot of weight, and how uncomfortable some of those discussions are for those who still smoke or still have pounds to lose. That being said, here are a few tips that might help:
– First, DON’T do it by email! If you do, you run the risk of misinterpretation.
– Bring it up in conversations, casually, and lunch, etc… When people know what your challenges or pet peeves are, sometimes they will work to honor them.
– At a team meeting, discuss your ideas on how to improve everyone’s productivity. Sell them on how it can help them!
– Add a tip of the week to your e-mail signature line.
– Print out and share Egan’s 10 E-mandments of a productive e-mail culture. Visit http://marshaegan.com/emandments.html
