The reptilian brain, our oldest brain, operates at level of survival instinct. It's life of easy choices -- Can I eat it? Will it eat me? Can I mate with it?

This brain regulates basic life functions, generates strong primitive emotions needed for survival (lust, fear, aggression), doesn't take orders, and is so far away from "executive central" (the neocortex) it doesn't even know we have one. It is also seat of addiction.

Unmanaged it results in "poor judgment," so increase your awareness and EQ to learn how to incorporate this vital but sometimes troublesome source of knowledge into your life.

1. Hitting your partner instead of hitting in-box. EQ means knowing how to manage your anger and anger of others.

2. Banging law clerk instead of banging gavel.

Sex is great at right time, with right person and this rarely applies to workplace. Hire best candidate, not spandex mini.

3. Stealing from staff lounge refrigerator instead of stealing competitive edge.

Copyright (c) 2003 by Angela Booth

Who's reading email messages you send out? Not as many people as you think. For example, research by Internet marketing firms suggests that only ten per cent of email ezines are opened and read.

Email's turning into a spam-filled jungle to which only sensible response is a flame-thrower or a machete.

Here's what I do, and I expect that I'm typical. I get around 200 email messages a day. I delete 150 unread. I move 30 to a "follow up" folder, and read 20. By "read", I mean I open message and scan it quickly.

Will your message be read? Think about how your message will appear in someone's overcrowded Inbox, and structure it carefully to differentiate it from all spam and other trivia.

=> The From field

When you're scanning your list of messages, your glance moves first to From field. Is it from a friend or foe? Will you read or delete? If it's an address which sounds genuine, message has passed first test.

Therefore, your email address is important. Use your own name, or that of your business.

Your email name shouldn't be cute, or weird. When someone's cutting through swathes of spam, after tenth invitation to view utterly vile images, your cute email address will inspire rage, not a smile.

Remember that you're conducting business, and strive for professionalism.

Because I'm a writer, much of my email is from other writers. Many beginning writers select strange email addresses. Such as:

ialwayswantedtobeawriter@freeemail.com. Or writergrl27@atanotherfreeemailservice.com.

Even if you're forced to use a Web-based, free service because you don't have a computer at moment, or because you're travelling, read Help file to see how to set From field to your own name, rather than to your User Name for service. Many people have their email filters set to automatically delete mail from free services.

=> The Subject line

The primary rule: be clear.

Many people you're communicating with won't have any idea who you are, so your Subject line should make your reason for communicating with them plain.

If your message's Subject line is blank, or if it has a weird subject line, it will be deleted, unread.

Drop cute, friendly, or mysterious subject lines. Spammers use cute, friendly and mysterious subject lines.

I automatically delete: "Hi!" (sounds like someone sending me a virus); "Hey come see" (not while you live and breathe); "Re: your account payment" (the address has to be from someone I do business with); "Auto-response confirmed" (you're an idiot); "thanks for your subscription" (I didn't subscribe, and I hope you die a slow, miserable death).

If you're sending an article proposal, for example, say so right on Subject line, with:

"Article Proposal: 10 ways to fold your socks"

Can't think of a Subject line? Take a moment. Ask yourself why you're sending message.