Stick to a Routine
Getting out of the habit of checking email frequently can be tough.
Check and respond to emails twice a day at a specific time. The rest of the day you can be dedicated to your work and not lose focus because of incoming messages.
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Trying to locate an email you want to respond to can be very time-consuming.
Mark the email you want to respond to later as "unread." It is easier to find between all your other messages.
Hire someone to organize your inbox.
This person will be responsible for cleaning up your inbox, forwarding very important emails, removing spam, and even replying.
Use a smart app to manage your email messages.
Set up filters that segment messages as they arrive. Each time you log in, check the important folder right away and give these emails priority.
Even though email messaging has provided us with better communication, we have a hard time managing every message that enters our inbox.
Finding better ways to organize your inbox will benefit your productivity.
An acknowledgment of receipt will lower emails because fewer people will hound you for a response.
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think of every email you get as either something you need to take action on, track, or refer to later.
Every time you open a conversation, decide right away what to do with it. Don’t postpone and come back to it. You touch it once and move on.
Once you've got the flow of email reduced to messages that matter, it's time to clear the non-urgent out of your inbox.
- Reply if a very quick reply is possible, like Thanks or Great or On it.
- Reply with a macro if one of your pre-written replies works.
- Forward/Delegate emails that others can handle.
- Process later. The "to process" is the second folder.
- Archive or delete if no further action is needed.
Once this is done, only the deeply urgent things are left.
Email tends to come in all the time and can create distractions and disruptions to your schedule.
Turn off new message notifications on both your computer and smartphone to prevent constant distractions. Check for mail when it's convenient for you.