Is your email Inbox making you stressed? Do you find it hard to get anything done because of this out-of-control monster? Enjoy 5 tips I use to stay on top of emails:
- Only subscribe to lists that provide absolute value and you really trust the advice given and that is pushing your business or life forward. (Most subscriptions are less than great and add clutter and stress.) I think I’m only subscribed to 3-4 email lists and I am a fan of a lot of websites online. If you want to stay connected to what someone is doing, follow them on social media. Also, make a list of sites you want to go to once a week and see what’s new. For example, each Friday, you could schedule one hour to review all sites you want to stay in touch with (but you’re not willing to clog your inbox with their news).
- If you have a high email count now, delete ALL old newsletters and subscriptions that you’ve saved as Unread, thinking you’ll get to them later. This is the case for many people who have hundreds or thousands of emails. Chances are you didn’t miss anything too grave, and you won’t read them later anyway. The key is to get down to a zero inbox so you can start with better habits moving forward.
- Find out which emails you respond to over and over and over again with the same information (such as lead emails), then create a template that you can copy/paste into new emails and edit slightly. Along with this idea, you could delegate those emails to a Virtual Assistant (VA) to answer and manage them on your behalf.
- If you’re a Gmail user, look into getting 2 plugins that will make your life SOOO much better. One is “Boomerang” allowing you to schedule emails to send in the future. Two is “Active InBox” which is the best email management tool on the market in my opinion. I bought it for my team to use and they love it too!
- One of my biggest keys is I handle the small things immediately when they come in. If someone asks a quick question, I’ll reply right away then it’s off my mind and plate. If someone emails me a file, I immediately download it and organize it instead of saying I’ll get to it later. For me, a higher number of emails stresses me out! So I keep my Inbox at 5-10 emails max at all times.
What do you do to stay on top of your email Inbox? Leave a comment below and let’s get this growing issue under control!
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