As I sat down to write to you today, I realized something: email is a hot topic among my clients right now. And surprisingly, I haven’t shared tips on it in quite a while—even though it’s one of my favorite things to help people with!
So if you’ve ever felt that “deer in the headlights” moment when staring at your inbox, here are my top three strategies to help you feel more focused and less frazzled:
1. Set Email Time-Frames (a.k.a. Timeblocks)
Take the total time you spend on email each day and divide it by how often you need to check it. For example, if you spend 2 hours a day and check email four times, that’s 30 minutes per time-frame. These don’t need to be rigid appointments—just gentle boundaries to keep you from being glued to your inbox all day.
2. Use a Timer
During each email time-frame, set a timer. You’ll be amazed how quickly you start making decisions. Something about a ticking clock puts your brain in “get-it-done” mode.
3. Try the 4 D’s (David Allen’s method, adapted for email)
- Do it if it’s quick
- Defer it if it needs more time—move it to your to-do list
- Delegate it to someone else if it’s not a good use of your time
- Delete it if it’s not useful or worth saving
I hope these tips will help you get past your email overwhelm. If you have any questions or need additional help, you can click this link to schedule a no charge Tech Stress Breakthrough call if you need to talk it through with me.
