Napoleon’s Mail-Reading Tactic Is More Relevant Than Ever
Why he waited three weeks to open the mail.
Napoleon waited three weeks before opening his mail. In Ralph Waldo Emerson’s essay, Napoleon, or The Man of the World, he describes the instructions Napoleon gave his secretary:
“He directed Bourrienne to leave all letters unopened for three weeks, and then observed with satisfaction how large a part of the correspondence had thus disposed of itself and no longer required an answer.”
Although he died nearly 200 years ago, Napoleon holds a power most of us would be incapable of exhibiting. In today’s society, 95% of texts will be read within 3 minutes of being sent, with the average response time for a text being a mere 90 seconds.
This leaves a burning question: What is actually important?
Chances are, if you left a situation alone as Napoleon did, it would likely resolve itself. Sadly, it isn’t feasible to avoid most problems these days. 24/7 news coverage and a wired-in culture make it almost impossible to filter what you receive entirely. Still, there is a lot left to be desired.
Napoleon knew his time was important, so he didn’t want to waste it on unimportant matters. If an issue was still relevant after the three weeks, then it required his…
