If you’re an information junkie like me who subscribes to numerous professional, trade and special interest e-newsletters, then you’re probably just as overwhelmed as I am when it comes to managing the email inbox.
Yes, you’ve set up rules for Outlook (or similar program) to automatically route emails to appropriate folders.
Yes, it’s easy to glance at those folders for new emails.
But it’s also so very easy to get caught up in either taking “only a minute” to read a snippet here or there.
Before you know it, you’ve spent an hour on “educating” yourself on the latest news on the effect of Google’s most recent algorithm update, the reasons why you should attend the next best-ever conference, or how to improve your swim stroke for faster race times.
The key term here is “educating” because, otherwise, how can you justify that last hour that didn’t make a dent in the piles of work on your desk or on your project list?
Here’s a suggestion I’m going to try myself: switch to using a free email service like Gmail to handle all those incoming e-newsletters and notices that aren’t pertinent to my day-to-day work activities.
While I imagine it’s going to take some time to update all those e-newsletter accounts, I’m hoping that in the long run this will help me be more productive in the office.
Have another idea? Share your experience with me. Thanks!
