This post was inspired by my friend Emily, who updated her status on Facebook as "crawling out of an "inbox" mess" a few weeks ago. I've read where the looming backlog of messages in your inbox can create unnecessary stress. Who needs that? I found this article by Janet Baily, whose company is Mindful Time Management (http://www.mindfultimemanagement.com/). You should check out her website for other great time management suggestions. The link below offers a great methodology for cleaning out your inbox...so I gave it a try: http://www.mindfultimemanagement.com/2009/10/approaching-the-inbox-with-a-shovel-or-maybe-a-bulldozer-tea-and-lots-of-chocolate/
I didn't have tea or chocolate...I drank a Michelob Ultra and ate pizza instead. It took two hours to file and delete my way to a better state of mind. I left 21 emails that will serve as my to-do list when I return to work on Monday. I'm afraid if I filed them, I'd just probably forget about them. Now, I just need to commit myself to keeping this practice up. Cheers!
An update: After more than a week of committing to an almost empty inbox, I can tell you this exercise has quickly become a daily obsession for me. As of right now, I have 12 messages stored there that still need action, a "to-do" list really. I've been busy with sales calls most of this past week and literally feel my stress level heighten as I come back to my office and see the new messages cluttering my desktop. How exhilerating it is to just read, act, file, or delete each message. Anyone else trying this? I would love to hear how it's going.
ReplyDelete