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As a freelancer, you’ll notice that your inbox can become just as cluttered as the rest of your life. Clients, spam, and family members make it harder and harder to keep an uncluttered inbox, and to keep from feeling overwhelmed when cleaning it. It’s not as hard as you may think, we’ll get through it together!
Here are my simple steps to achieving Email Zen:
1) Don’t check email first thing in the morning, or have it constantly on. This isn’t a new tip, it’s on most of the productivity blogs in existence, but that’s not to say it’s not 100% correct. When you check email first thing in the morning, it gets you into an instant “procrastination” mode. Try to get your most important things done in the morning, and then check your email after lunch.
2) When you check your email, dispose of each one, one at a time, right away. After reading an email, delete it immediately if you don’t need it. Make the decision after each email, and your inbox becomes much less cluttered.
2a) Is it junk or some forwarded email? Trash it immediately.
2b) Is it a long email that you just need to read for information? If it’s an email that contains instructions, or something that you don’t need to read all the way through, make a folder called “read later”. This way you can move it to the folder, and quickly scan it when you need the directions. Then delete it!
2c) If the email requires action, make a note of the action on your to-do lists. You can star, or archive the email for easy viewing later.
2d) If you can respond to it in a minute or two, do so immediately. For quick responses, answer it immediately, and then delete. You’ll save a lot of inbox room this way.
2e) If you need to follow up on the email later, or are waiting for a response, note it on a Waiting For list. Don’t just leave it in your inbox as a reminder.
3) I have only one folder: Archive. I don’t need a million folders. More often than not, this just creates messy folders as well as a cluttered inbox. If you aren’t cleaning out your inbox, what makes you think your folder system will be any different? You don’t need a bunch of folders!
Email Zen is that easy: check email at regular periods, take action on each email right away (or note it on a list to do later) and archive.
Ahhh. Empty inbox!
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