The worst thing you can do in a professional email is play it safe

I was writing a work email and found myself spending an embarrassing amount of time staring at it before hitting send. The message was short, the ask simple. I’d already read it aloud three times, checked the grammar, closed my browser, and pulled up the draft on my phone as if it might look different in a smaller font. I wondered: Should I wait until tomorrow morning after they’ve had their coffee, add a “just” to soften the tone, or remove the sugary sweet compliment about the recent podcast episode that “made me laugh so hard” so they don’t think I’m a stalker? Was it too soon to follow ...