Supercharge your email productivity

GlobalizeIT LTD
Nov 6 · 3 min read

Being productive is one of the key soft skills required today. Managing your time, your work and ultimately your life all comes down to how productive you are. Why get your email organized?

Emails are one of those areas in the business that gets overlooked, yet is one of the biggest time wasters in your professional life. But you are not employed to be an email responder. You are employed because you have exceptional skills in other areas. So don’t let email stuck up your valuable time.

Empty your inbox

Of course, the first thing you should do is to empty your inbox. The best time to do this is at the end of this workweek — take your time, go through your inbox and organize everything — delete, categorize and unsubscribe. It is time-consuming, but an easy task, so you can do it even if you are a little tired. Just imagine how wonderful it would be to get back to your tasks after the weekend, open your inbox and see everything in order!

Pick newsletters wisely and categorize them

Subscribing to email lists is both a blessing and a curse — it allows you to keep up with your favorite company, brands, and thought leaders — but it also crowds your inbox.

Here is the key to getting the most from them:

Use this trick — decide which newsletters are important and categorize them — “Business news”, “Digital Marketing”, “Hobbies” or just “Others”.

How will this help?

Even if you are interested in marketing, for example, and want to be always up to date with this topic, if you receive an email at 2 o’clock on Monday and you are sunk into work, this notification will only annoy you or even worsе — distract you. But if you categorize newsletters you will have the power focus on “Digital Marketing” when you have free time and actually learn something from these emails, or to enjoy your “Hobbies” folder while drinking coffee on Sunday morning.

Stop checking your email first thing in the morning

Nothing is more stressful and more disruptive than checking your email first thing in the morning and starting your day with multiple fires. Instead, begin by reviewing your weekly goals and top priorities — make a list of things you’d like to accomplish that day. After you have your list, pick something to make progress on or an easy win to start your day right.

THEN check your email and tackle that long list of people who need your attention! You’ll be focused and energized instead of stressed and disoriented. Some people would argue that their job does not allow for this type of system — but it will surprise you how little time it takes to review goals, make a priority list for the day, and tackle a small task that gets you closer to your goals.

Have a “Reply by XX days” folder

File the emails that need your reply in a “Reply by XX days” folder, where XX is the day of the week. You can set aside 3 days every week to reply to emails, e.g. — Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. This way you will not be pressured to reply immediately whenever you get the email. You can read it, mentally acknowledge it, and think over it until it’s time to reply (an average of 3–8 days from receipt of the email).

When sending an email, think through the process

Take an extra minute to think about why you are sending an email before you do so — and then think through how you can write the most effective email that will not create seven more emails. Think through what additional information you could add to your email to give the recipient as much of the information they need in one email to make a decision. Add “if this, then that” scenarios to your emails — cutting down on the recipient having to ask you additional questions.

Conclusion

Every day we get hundreds of new messages. Email can quickly make you feel you’re like a hamster on a wheel. It’s a daily battle. And it never ends. Used the right way, email can increase productivity. Rule the technology, instead of letting it rule you.


GlobalizeIT LTD

Written by

Blockchain and Web Development Company | We shape innovative ideas into high-tech software products

GlobalizeIT LTD

Blockchain and Web Development Company | We shape innovative ideas into high-tech software products

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