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Achieving “Inbox Zero”

zero inbox [1]Email is one of the electronic age’s most valuable communication tools. However, if this medium is not managed properly all those messages can clog an inbox and grind productivity to a halt. The following steps will allow you to maintain control of your email so you can achieve “inbox zero.”

  1. Commit a set amount of time to catching up on email. Depending on the size of your backlog, set aside an hour or more to slice, dice and delete those messages. If your backlog is in the thousands, you may need to plan several catch-up sessions. This exercise decreases the likelihood you will miss an important commitment or communication because it was buried and increases the emphasis on the items that remain. This cleanup will also ensure you are in compliance with your firm’s document retention policies. Set aside time every day to clean out your inbox to prevent this problem form reoccurring.
  2. Review your emails and delete those that can be deleted immediately. This includes old newsletters and alerts that you so diligently saved to read later. Unsubscribe to subscription emails you rarely read to reduce your email noise going forward. Be quick, decisive and unremorseful.
  3. Identify emails that require retention, but not action, and immediately file them into an appropriately named folder for future reference. A growing number of professionals retain emails in their inbox and rely on search options to find them because each additional email in your inbox decreases the visibility of all of the others.
  4. Focus on quick responses to emails that require response or action. Tackle emails that can be responded to in three minutes or less, and then delete or file the original message as appropriate.   While it is easy to put off the quick items in favor of the more problematic ones, the greatest efficiency is achieved by completing as many quick-response notes as possible. This is also the time to send “I will research your question and let you know by next Tuesday”- type of responses on the emails that will require extra time. Set the expectation early that your response will take a set number of days, and determine that window by thinking about the nature of the request and your current schedule. This both informs the recipient of you plan of action and relieves you of internal pressure to respond immediately.
  5. Turn your attention to emails that require action. These actions fall into three categories: High priority, delegate and defer.