Does the volume of your e-mail inundate you? Do you dread opening your inbox because you’ll have 50 or even hundreds of messages since the last time you looked? Is your system constantly filled to capacity with messages from people you don’t know? In this era of instant messaging, text messaging and Web-based communication, e-mail remains a mainstay for most individuals and businesses alike.
Worldwide instantaneous communication for a mere few dollars a month has opened up countless opportunities. It eliminates phone tag, helps us maintain a paper trail and allows us to communicate on our own schedule. However, as with any technology tool, there is a downside; e-mail is an additional source of clutter in our lives and just like paper, to be useful, it has to be controlled. Many a person has discovered, instead of freeing us up to be more productive, e-mail can add to the massive load of information engulfing us daily. So, how can we tame that e-mail beast before it eats us alive? Consider these simple tips:
1. Create an electronic filing cabinet (analogous to a paper filing cabinet) using electronic folders for key categories.
• Make an “action folder” to track items that need attention and an “archive folder” for messages that are only being maintained for historical or legal backup.
• Spend a little time setting up a filing system and you can save countless hours.
2. Schedule the same time twice a day to check your e-mail.
• Limit your time to answer
e-mails and eliminate as many messages as possible immediately. Don’t let answering e-mail chew up your valuable time.
3. Use filters, if your e-mail provider/software offers this option, to screen and file messages from specific sources directly into designated folders, thus saving time and eliminating your need to frequently search out important information.
• Filter or move unwanted spam and messages from unknown sources into a “deleted items” folder and delete immediately. Don’t waste your time and risk corrupting your computer.
4. Avoid doing the “e-mail shuffle.” Once you read a message and respond, delete it or move it to your storage folders.
5. Reduce or eliminate forwarded jokes and stories by asking the senders to please remove you from their joke list. This isn’t being rude. Mention you’d like to receive personal messages, but you just don’t have time for the jokes.
6. Every week, review one key folder and clean it out.
• Keep only active e-mail in
this folder
• Delete or archive all inactive
e-mail.
Now that you have tamed your
e-mail, you can start thinking about those paper files.
Questions for “The Mess Doctor” or if you need professional assistance to get organized, contact Barbara Ricketts at MessDoctor@Mac.com or call 661-263-0124.