Clients talk to me about the number of e-mails they receive every day. This barrage can cause a loss of focus resulting in lost productivity. I recommend that they rethink how they respond to e-mails.
First, respond to e-mails more like responding to traditional correspondence or faxes. Don’t hit the reply button to send “got it,” “ok,” or “thanks;” causing the receiver to incur more incoming mail with little benefit. Instead, consider a no-need-to-reply policy with the folks you work with unless you specify differently. Add to your e-mail signature line: “To reduce e-mail volume, please respond only if necessary.” Delete this line when you need a response.
Second, save up responses to one person. Some people may write 2-5 e-mails a day when working on a project. It is far better to respond one time more comprehensively. When I work on projects, I ask others to summarize issues/questions one time each day.
Third, stop conversational relays. When a question or issue is resolved, there is no reason to continue back and forth responses. Learn to be finished when you are finished.
Fourth, review your e-mail subscriptions and evaluate how you read them. Unsubscribe to most, except for the daily Business Proverbs. Determine how much time you need to read each. For example, it takes less than 60 seconds to read the daily e-mail I send. Limit reading your subscriptions to about 5-10 minutes. Save others to read during lunch or at 5:00 pm.
We are responsible for managing our e-mail. Paul instructed us to “Make the most of every opportunity.” (Ephesians 5:16, NLT) When we spend time on e-mails that should be spent on more important work, we lose time we could spend with our family.
Steve Marr, Your Christian Business Coach
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