I want to share some information from Wesley Fryer's blog about e-mail and the concept of "inbox zero", or an empty box. I have shared my thoughts with many who have inboxes that take up to two hours a day and always "refill" by the next day. The reading resonated with me because I always try to leave the day with nine or fewer in my in box. Sometimes it is difficult, but it has forced me to consider how and when I respond. The number nine is arbitrary, but it works for me.
In the blog he identifies the work of two others, David Allen and Merlin Mann, that talk about edges and building walls so that we control e-mail and not the other way around. One thing that caught my attention was the thought of mapping what we say are the important things to do in our job against what we do. Where would answering e-mail be in this comparison?
I have not yet reached "inbox zero" and don't know that it is even a target for me. I do know, however, that when I made the decision to move to "nine" it opened up time for other things. I took the time to view a video by Mann with some ideas on how to make this happen. It is about an hour, but the presentation is 32 minutes with questions. You may want to view it if you find yourself spending hours daily trying to reduce your inbox.
Enough for now, have a great day.
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2 comments:
Yes it is! For the last 30 hours I have been practicing "Inbox Zero." Your post pointed me in the direction of the Mann video and I have been a participant ever since. The feeling I get when I process my inbox to zero is liberating. The feeling that I get when I'm not letting email determine how I spend my time is exhilarating. I've infected at least two others with this newfound freedom . . . I'm sure there will be more. Thank you for pointing us in the right direction.
I'm intrigued. The notion of "inbox zero" seems impossible to me this tiem of year, but I plan to watch the video and stay open to being influenced.
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