Managing Email Addiction
People spend hours upon hours on email these days. In a previous article, The Low-Tech Times previously referenced Tina Su’s advice in managing this problem.
Last week, Joe Manna wrote a good article on the same subject. Here’s an excerpt from Joe’s article:
- Work Smarter, Not Harder: You don’t need to watch your Inbox. Check it at intervals. I suggest three to four times daily. Don’t check e-mail unless you are able to dedicate a half-hour segment to break through it like Chuck Norris. Prioritize necessary e-mails, throw spam into your appropriate Junk/Spam folder. Whatever you do, don’t open Linkbait.
- Learn when to take e-mail “offline” into a face-to-face meeting, phone call or Instant Message, if available.
- Reply All is the enemy. Don’t do it unless it’s absolutely vital.
- If an e-mail has you as the CC or BCC, it probably isn’t all that important.
- Use the Important/Urgency method to determine when you should respond to e-mails.