If you have ever accidentally sent an email before you were ready, you know the feeling of sheer horror that balls up inside you as you nervously await the other party’s response.
Maybe you fumble, and send a second email in an attempt to rectify the first. Or maybe, you just sit around, agonizing and worrying about what you sent.
During these embarrassing moments, you don’t have to stress out any more. You can recall the message before the other party even has a chance to view it, as long as both parties are using Outlook and Exchange for their email.
This won’t work if the other party has a free email address, such as a gmail or yahoo address. But, if the other party uses Exchange for email, and many businesses do, you can use this trick to quickly and easily recall messages, so that you don’t have to spend the next 24 to 48 hours biting your nails.
This would also work great for interoffice communications, when you know your office is utilizing Exchange for email.
Recalling the Message
To recall the offending email message, go to your sent folder in Outlook, and open the message you want to recall.
In the message ribbon at the top, look for the Move section. This should be in the middle of the bar, next to Quick Steps.
Click on Actions, and then click on Recall Message. If the option is grayed out, you will be unable to recall your message.
From here, you’ll have the option to delete unread copies of your message, or delete unread copies and create a new message to replace it with.
You can even tell it to send you a message, giving you the status of the message recall for all recipients involved.
If you use Outlook 2007, here are the directions for recalling an email message.
Save yourself from embarrassing office emails and short, scraggly nails (from all that biting) by recalling your email message next time you accidentally sent something you shouldn’t.
Have you ever needed to recall a message? Leave us a comment and tell us about it. What did you end up doing in this situation?
Julie Strier is a freelance writer who is interested in helping you achieve peace and calm with your technology. Email: [email protected]. Website: www.mybusinesswriter.com.