Here in Connecticut spring has arrived and with it the beginning of the boating season.

As I begin each season, I sit myself down and remind myself of the ease with which tools are lost over the side. As you settle into outfitting the boat for the season, bringing down the gear and reinstalling things, it is easy to forget. The motion of the boat is a little unfamiliar and there is a lot of confusion. It is also usually still a little cold and often very windy. (Last year I lost an Allen Wrench over the side putting on my barbeque grill bracket.)

Being out on the water is an experience that is unique when it comes to keeping a tight grip on things. I try never to bring more tools on deck at any one time than I can hold or fit in my pockets. The key difference on the water versus being on dry land is that once something escapes your grip, it is GONE. Even working on a lawn, if you get down on all fours, sometimes you can find that screw you dropped. On the water, they go “sploosh” and are gone forever. (Although, not gone with the wind. That would require you to be under way. But, I digress.)

In our job search world there is a similar effect with regard to email.

I don’t know about you, but I am one of those types who can’t save a file I am working on enough times. As I type along I have trained myself over the years to hit save anytime I pause. I can’t begin to tell you how often this has saved me from disaster.

The problem I have is that I have from time to time sent emails I had not finished. (The button is in a similar spot to Word and in my compulsiveness, I can get momentarily confused.

I wish I could tell you that the bulk of the poorly done messages I get each day were the result of this kind of error, but that would be a lie, and as you know us financial types are not good at lying.

The truth is that most folks think they are in such a rush that they don’t have the time to check their spelling, punctuation, or even to sign their names. Although I will be kind and suggest that they are victims of what we will now and forever call “The electronic sploosh syndrome,” they are actually just careless.

Perhaps they have brought too many tools on deck or are unaware that once you hit send it is GONE. But, unlike the tools I have lost over the side, your messages remain out in the Ethernet ready to embarrass you FOREVER. (I have a collection of the best ones.)

So, as you sit down at your computer in the days to come, keep the “sploosh syndrome” in mind.

In our electronic world you may have it “gone” from your computer, but on mine it may last forever.

Regards, Matt