Do you ever wonder if you can actually have zero emails in your in-box? Well, I do know some people who have empty in-boxes. I will admit I never have. I fully expect my in-box, virtual and not virtual, to be full when I die. If you are trying to move in the direction of a less full in-box, here are eight tips, plus a bonus reflection, that might just help.
1. Send less email. Doesn’t that seem obvious? If you send less, you will get less.
2. Acknowledge receipt of the email. I do this with my clients when they send in prep sheets before a call. It lets them know I got their email and they do not need to follow up. It is a quick “Got it. Talk with you later.” This lets the original sender off the hook.
3. If you do not expect a reply, indicate that. I got one such email recently with NNTR, online code for No Need to Reply. It was great. I just read and deleted.
4. If you get marketing emails that you no longer read, consider getting off the mailing list. Or learn how to use “rules” in your email program and route those emails to a separate folder so you do not see them all the time in your in-box. Then set aside time to look at them, or if you find you don’t get to them, trash them. If you rarely look at the emails, it might be time to unsubscribe.
5. In lieu of creating rules for incoming emails, you might consider setting up a separate g-mail account for list-serve emails or newsletters that you sign up for. That way, you have to make an effort to go read the items. You might find you do not need so many of them.
6. Don’t check email all day long. Set a routine for handling your emails. If you allow time at the beginning of the day, mid-day, and the end of the day and stick to it, you will do a better job at not letting the email get out of control. I am not suggesting you do it three times a day; I am suggesting you create a system and stick with it.
7. Follow David Allen’s “Two-Minute Rule.” Allen of Getting Things Done fame suggests that if it will take less than two minutes to handle the email, do it now, even if it is not a high priority. (Remember you are setting aside time to do emails; you are not checking all day long.) He has lots of other good ideas for productivity in his book.
8. Get or use a spam filter. I use SpamSieve, and I can’t believe what a difference it has made. Now the spam heads right to the junk folder. I think it works better than the filter that came with my email program. Now, I just wish it worked on my iphone!
As I noted above, your in-box will not be empty when you die. I don’t even think that needs to be your — or my — goal. I would rather not worry about it. Instead think of what the really important things are in my life. We cannot do it all, and sometimes, the masses of emails that we receive, can move us into that thought pattern. Email arrives, it must be important, we must deal with it. We let someone else set our agenda. And, then we check it off the to-do list.
Instead, take some time to think about who and what matters in your life. Think about putting them on the to-do list. I think you will be a lot happier, having enjoyed the journey rather than checking things off the list. Regardless, when you die, the in-box won’t be empty.
What do you do to keep your inbox under control and thereby save yourself time? Have you found a way that you would like to share with us? Share it below or on our ICAP Facebook or Google+ pages.
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Morna McEver is the founder and CEO of the International Association of Creative Arts Professionals where creative arts entrepreneurs craft business success. Her weekly e-zine offers tips, techniques and inspiration to help you craft business success from your creative arts passion. You can sign up for a FREE subscription at http://www.creativeartsprofessional.com.
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