Do you have thousands of messages in your inbox, and receive hundreds more every day? Welcome to the club. Instead of being overwhelmed by email, take these steps to regain control:
- Turn off the spigot. Unsubscribe to irrelevant e-newsletters and turn off Facebook or Twitter notifications. Consider whether colleagues are copying you on too many emails. If so, ask to only be updated with final decisions.
- Keep a clean inbox. It’s easier to handle incoming messages without clutter staring back at you. Create a new folder called “Old Inbox” and put all your messages in there. Then when new email comes in, sort it right away.
- Take an occasional break. Disconnect from all things digital once in a while. Take an email sabbatical next time you go on vacation.
Adapted from “Stop Email Overload” by Amy Gallo.