Unhealthy Relationship … with your “in-box’?
Is e-mail bogging you down?
With so many social media networks, literally at our fingertips, it’s no wonder that we can’t keep up with them. They are taking a toll on our nerves… as well as our libidos! Every day we are bombarded by hundreds, or potentially thousands, of e-mails, texts, tweets and Facebook messages.
How are we supposed to juggle all of them? This presents quite a daunting task to many of us! Yet according to some social media gurus, it is possible to attain a healthy balance between these media…and find time for fun in life!
Isn’t e-mail supposed to keep us more organized?
It was always my impression that e-mail, with its “reply”, “forward”, and other options, was developed to streamline our activities, increase organization, and expand our social “connections”. Lately, I’ve found myself fearing my “in-box”. I didn’t want to “open” my mail lest I discover how many “new” e-mails were lurking in my future.
The wake –up call :
It happened just a few days ago, when I dauntingly opened my “in-box”, only to find a staggering number of e-mails lying within – a whopping 1,019 e-mails, waiting for my finger to tap the “read” button. Thoughts of taking a hammer to my computer quickly entered my mind, but fortunately, I calmed myself before taking this blustering action.
A more civil plan was in order – and I needed to take responsibility for creating this media monster. Over the past weeks, I had been operating within an extreme state of denial ( that they actually existed) and guilt ( “how could I delete messages sent by other people?”). The thought of literally erasing all of them with a quick click of my finger, or triaging them to a different folder, just hadn’t been a viable option for me. Until…
The Solution!
I’m participating in a social media class, Creating Fame, led by renowned media guru, Laura K. Roeder. Luckily, in one of the sessions, I watched a healing and inspiring video by Merlin Mann, called “zero in-box”. Wow, there actually was a way for me to take back control of my “in-box monger”!
In his video, Mr. Mann recommends that we start by having a “processing” system. According to this system, you can choose between five options of what to do with each e-mail.
Five Choices to take Action:
1) Delete: Yes, it now has become my favorite! Start by eliminating those e-mails which you don’t need to read, are spam or just “junk”. Unsubscribe to those you don’t read or need.
2) Delegate: Another favorite! Consider if the e-mail could be better answered by someone else. Possibly a staff member, business partner or friend?
3) Respond: Answer the e-mail – using maximum of 4-5 sentences. You aren’t being rude, you’re being efficient and succinct.
4) Defer: Maybe this e-mail needs a bit more thought – either click as “read as new” or put in a “To-Do “ folder which you check later that day.
5) Do: Take the action needed and move onto next e-mail. An example would be entering an upcoming event in your PDA or google calendar.
We only have 24 hours in a day! Let’s start having more fun and doing the things that bring us happiness – rather than burdening our daily lives with too many e-mails!
Please share your own tips and personal ways of controlling your “in-box monster”.
The Listen to Your Libido Community is waiting to hear from you!
Please share your tips and comments below.
To watch the Merlin Mann video, click on : http://inboxzero.com/video/
