As with most facets of modern technology, email can be either a blessing or a curse depending on how effectively it is used and managed. Today, we can send a lengthy message to someone half-way around the world and receive a reply in minutes, but we can also waste a significant portion of our workday sifting through mountains of junk emails and responding to correspondence that should have been acted upon days ago.
If you often find yourself struggling to keep a handle on your email-related tasks, the following tips might be of help:
1 – Don’t let your inbox become stuffed with messages that haven’t been opened yet. Every time you check your email, get rid of the obvious spam and other junk first thing.
If you’re using an email client such as Outlook or Thunderbird simply hold down the CTRL key, click on all the junk emails and delete them in one fell swoop. If you’re using an online email account such as Gmail or Hotmail, check off every junk mail you see and then click the Delete button.
If you keep getting emails that are similar to one another (i.e. newsletters, etc.) that you never read, set up a message rule to send it directly to the trash folder upon receipt.
2 – Next, resist the urge to procrastinate and handle every email that can possibly be taken care of right now before you move on to something else. By handling those messages right away, they won’t clog up your inbox and you won’t have to come back to them later. After you’re finished with an email, either delete it or move it to an archive folder for safekeeping.
3 – Never use your primary email address to sign up for newsletters or online services because once you do you’ll start receiving a ton of spam and phishing emails – sometimes within minutes! Instead, sign up for and use a “throwaway” email account at Yahoo or Hotmail. Be very careful about who you share your email address with.
4 – If practical to do so, initiate a routine where you check and respond to your emails at regular intervals. This tends to be more efficient than simply stopping what you’re doing every time something lands in your inbox.
5 – Have your name and email address removed from any email subscriptions or databases that are used solely to send you emails that you would rather not receive.
Conclusion: The task of handling emails needn’t consume your entire day. Follow the tips outlined above and you’ll be well on your way to taming the email beast!
About the author: Rick Rouse is the owner of RLROUSE.COM.