How to deal with your overflowing inbox

There are two kinds of people in this world — those who do inbox zero and those who don’t really give a damn. If you are in a state of mind where having zero emails in your inbox sounds tempting, read further.

If you’re like me and you like some order in life, you probably try to keep your inbox at a maintainably low number which should be exactly 0.

However, busy happens and then those pesky emails start creeping up on you. Been there, done that, recovered with a great technique.

PS: This applies to personal/actionable emails, not newsletters. Newsletters are a simple read & archive action and usually don’t require a response.

The 4-step Action Technique

1. Start with the oldest email

Yes, the oldest. No cheating! Chances are that bad boy is the sole reason for your overflowing inbox. It’s usually the email that you don’t really know how to deal with and the natural inclination is to just leave it hanging there. Don’t! Open it immediately after reading this post and apply step #2.

2. Read every email

Even if you’ve already read an email when you got it, do it again. You might’ve gained new knowledge since you last opened it or you might’ve missed an important detail.

3. Set a 3-minute timer and find one action step you or the sender can make to move the conversation to the next point

Most common reasons I’ve found that kept me from replying immediately:

• You don’t have enough information to make a decision. Great, explain that and ask for more info.
• You know what to do but you’re too lazy to do it. No problem, take 3 minutes and write down a to-do item for yourself (you do have a to-do list, right?) and then archive that email. If the sender needs a reply, let her know you’ll be tackling that in the next X days and you’re done.
• You’re not sure you’re ready to move forward with a request. Again — explain that to the sender and ask them to follow up after X weeks. If they’re serious, they will.

4. Don’t stop until you’ve reached inbox zero

This one is pretty important too. Remember — every email should result in an action step. Whether that’s asking for more info, creating a to-do item that you’ll tackle soon or closing a conversation in any other way.

That’s it! If you’re not at zero, try this one out today and thank me later!