Lets Get Email Under Control

Now is the time to getting email under control

TIME SAVING SOLUTIONS

Action Your Email

• If an email has sat in the inbox for a long time with a request ,a short response to the sender along the lines of “Do you still need this?” is appropriate.
• If you don’t have an answer to an email just say so “ I don’t know”
• If you will never respond to the email , if it is old (more than a week or 2) just delete it or answer it but do something.
• Use filters & folders in your email program for low priority emails that can be actioned , read or deleted at a later date.
  • The use of filters is not just a “set and forget process” and needs to be tweaked over time which will ultimately save you time.
  • The basic filter is whether an email can be deleted immediately or archived for later (Done on receipt of the email)
  • Then on a set time go through your filtered emails and see what you missed
  • Delete , this is the hardest thing to do and is usually based on some set criteria
    • Is there an action task with this email?
    • Will I let it just sit and clog up my inbox?
    • Will I actually respond to this email?

Make use of Templates 

When responding to an email or starting a new email, have designated templates to speed the process up such as:

• Frequently asked questions response
• Thanking you response
• Administration information request

POINTS TO REMEMBER

Not All Messages Are The Same

Some email messages are far more important than others, you must understand this 

Make It Short

Make your emails short .If you can stop writing so much in emails you will have time to properly respond to the ones that need it.

Don’t Feel Guilty

If your email is out of control, don’t feel guilty 

Just start a course of action to rectify it

Your Time Is Valuable

There is not enough time to read every single email that you receive in the detail expected let alone respond to them 

FINAL POINT’S

DO OR DELETE

• Remember the only way an email will ever get out of your life is to either deal with it or get rid of it.

EDUCATION

• Learn the intricacies of your email program to assist you in taming your email in flow , a little bit of education goes a long way.