Minimize Emails

Sometimes, before I know it, I’m up to about 150 emails in my inbox. I have to admit that I do use my inbox as part of my to-do list. In other words, I will not file or delete an email until I’ve taken care of the action it is tied to, but most often I just accumulate emails that I’ve read but have not done something with.

This usually only happens when I have not been in front of my computer in a few days.   I have to stop and take some time to clear those older emails out. It takes awhile, but it must be done.  

To begin with, make sure the emails you are receiving are not useless and a waste of your time.  The more fluff you can weed out the more time you will save.

Here are some tips to help you minimize your emails:

1. Unsubscribe.  Remove yourself from all of the mass email lists that you do not absolutely need to read.  If you need some information you can always look it up on the internet.

2. Two-a-days.   Set aside two times a day to go through email. Maybe once first thing in the morning, and another time in the late afternoon.

3. Make an email appointment.  Try to deal with each email during the allotted time. Return all emails that require quick responses, then file or delete the incoming email. File any that you need for reference, and set a time to take care of any to-do’s related to emails that day, so that you can delete them or file them when you check back in on email later in the day.

4. Just delete. Don’t feel obligated to read every single email. If you are busy and some friends send you a joke email, it’s okay to delete it. Also, if you get daily emails, that are either updates, or blog entries, etc. You do not have to read each one. If you have time, great. Or if the subject really pertains to you, then take the time to read it quickly before you delete it. But if it doesn’t look like something you want to read…it is OK to delete it without reading it.

5. Automate.  You can set up for certain emails to go directly into folders that you have set up. The trick here is that you will need to have a way to manage those.  This can be helpful with filing emails you need for reference only.  However, be careful.  Do not get in the habit of keeping too many emails that you “might” need for reference.  The likelihood that you will go back and re-read most of them is probably pretty slim.

6. Save the Date. If you are keeping an email just because of a date to remember, stop and put it in your calendar or tickler file and then delete it or file it in a folder. That only takes a few minutes.

7. Daily Maintenance. Really try to clear out all emails for the day before you leave work, or before you close up your computer. If you stay on top of email, it is so much easier to maintain.

8. Take an email vacation too.  When you go on vacation, set your out of office, so that the people emailing you will receive a note that you are out and they will not continue to email you while you are out and create a ton of emails to go through and respond to when you return.

I hope these help you reduce your email inbox. It takes time to get into a good routine with email, but the main key is to deal with it daily so it doesn’t stack up!

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