photo courtesy of flickr user, Wies van Erp
The number one struggle in the digital age: how to get work done when you receive a stream of never ending emails? This topic seems to be a regular source of conversation with many people.
It’s a continuous and almost impossible challenge to not let emails distract me during a busy work week. When I’m trying to write or get a project done it takes me twice as long if I’m checking and responding to email during the process.
These tips help me to not feel completely overwhelmed by the never ending e-mails:
- Wake up 30 minutes earlier. I try my best to go through my entire inbox before 9 AM. I have realized that if I check my e-mail early, while everyone else is still sleeping, I can get through everything without the distraction of new e-mails. If I wait until normal business hours, then I can’t get through the e-mails from the night before because I am too busy checking the e-mails that are coming in from today. My goal every morning is to address all the old e-mails early so I’m not playing catch up all day.
- Turn off your e-mail. I promise the world will not end! If you need to concentrate on a project, then it is really okay to turn off your e-mail for a few hours. I have all of my e-mails forwarded to the Mac Mail on my desk top and with a quick click, I can turn it off. It is amazing to not be distracted by incoming mail. It’s astounding how much you can actually get done!
- Save all the e-mail requiring action to the end of the day. Unless something is urgent or time sensitive, I keep e-mails that require thought to the end of the day. If I see e-mails that I can answer with a yes or no or off the top of my head, then I usually respond right away. However, if something requires research or more thought, I usually save an hour to 30 minutes at the end of the day to answer them.
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