I am sure I am not alone in this digital age of sometimes feeling completely overwhelmed by the number of emails I receive in a day! This means that even a few hours out of the office means returning to a huge backlog and time spent sifting through trying to decide which are urgent and important, important but not urgent, etc.…

A few years ago I read one of Julia Doherty’s blog posts about Inbox Zero, and while I wouldn’t say I have completely adopted it, I am now proud of my much cleaner inbox. I don’t feel so overwhelmed, and more importantly far less often have that sinking feeling that I have missed an important email!

My inbox is a holding bay

I now use my inbox as a “holding” bay… emails come in and stay there until they are actioned… if it’s a printer’s proof, I send the proof to a client and have a folder for “proofs awaiting approval”, I have folders for “customers”, “suppliers”, “things to do” which covers marketing ideas I have had, or special promotions for me from my suppliers that need doing, but not critically… this means my inbox is now only filled with emails that need actioning pretty quickly… While it will not often get down to the magical zero, I am happy if it’s under ten… this may be while I am waiting for a supplier price to come in so I can quote, or maybe I have left it there as it’s imperative I remember to follow up.

It’s been life-changing

I can honestly say this has been life-changing for me and makes me feel so much more in control. When I think back to the “old days” when I often had between 3000 and 5000 emails in the inbox if I hadn’t “filed” them for a while, I can see how things were missed, and it fills me with dread!

I often find myself sharing my inbox routine with people when they are complaining about their inboxes – I always send them to the GU website to get all the details – let’s hope some of them take it up and feel the benefit!

I even keep track on my phone

With Outlook on my phone, I can keep track of this even when I am out of the office, allowing me to be more in control when I am on the move which has been so beneficial as the business has grown; leading to EVEN more emails!

So, not the most original blog from me this time, but having spent two days at a trade show recently, and really been grateful for my more streamlined inbox when I returned to the office and in the post-show catch up, I thought it was a timely reminder and a good time to share my experience!