Whenever we have surveyed our OfficeTime users, we find that “Email” is always the biggest time waster. This Readers Digest article bears that truth out, along with strategies for improving your time management by not wasting so much time with managing your inbox.
According to the article, constantly clearing that inbox wastes time and takes your focus away from what’s really important.
How do we get control over our email so that it doesn’t control us?
The first step is to identify the problem: You’re letting other people’s demands (their emails) become your priority.
Next, you need to be aware of the consequences to make you realize you need to make a change: You’re not getting done what you have to—or want to—do.
Finally, you need to take action: Do what you really need to do, and deal with emails (and other distractions) later in the day.
If there’s a genuine crisis—professional or personal—you will have to react. Otherwise, at the end of the day, maybe in the last hour, you take care of all those little interruptions that you used to do earlier in the day.
Kate Sullivan, business and productivity psychologist and content director of TCK Publishing, says,
“Email creates a snowball effect: The more you send, the more you receive.”
And emails tend to be low-priority items that are disproportionately emotionally draining. By spending your time striving for Inbox Zero, you’re not spending your time on the things that generate results—projects, planning, strategy, and other high-value projects.”
Here’s a great tip from radio show host, columnist and author Gayle Carson, EdD: “Always have your priorities ready—A, B, C, and then prioritize them,” she says. “If none of them are as important as your email, then deal with your email. But if this is a direct link to business, priorities come first.”