I run my own small PR consultancy and I needed some work done on a client's graphics. My designer has recently moved to Italy, so I sent her an email with the job brief and hoped she'd be able to do it in time.

My week went like this:

Monday/Tuesday:
"She probably hasn't checked her email yet."

Wednesday/Thursday:
"Okay, hopefully she's read my email, but she's probably swamped with other work, and hasn't got around to replying yet."

Friday/Saturday:
"Surely any moment now a detailed reply and some initial designs will arrive … please God!"

Sunday/Monday:
"She's read it. She must have. But while I sit here with rising blood pressure, she's off cavorting with an Italian lover! Eating pasta, drinking red wine and riding a scooter!"

When I finally got hold of her on the phone she told me that her connection had been down for the past fortnight. She hadn't got the brief, hadn't left her apartment much, and was feeling kinda lonely. I felt a mixture of guilt and panic.

The resulting rush job was, at best, mediocre. If I had known earlier that she hadn't got the message, I would have had time to make other arrangements. Since then I have used MSGTAG to make my critical communication more reliable, reduce my stress, and keep my imagination in check!