Opening the Inbox and seeing many pending unread emails highlighted in bold letters can be very frustrating and tiring. This will make us lose our interest in reading the newer emails, and we may start postponing the read. Also finding the mail we want can become tricky. It will also be like finding a needle in a haystack. There are some best methods to handle and manage your emails effectively. One such method is the Inbox Zero Method.
What is Inbox Zero Method?
Inbox Zero Method is one of the efficient email management approaches. It helps us to keep our Inboxes empty or almost free from messages. It was designed by Merlin Mann, a podcaster and productivity expert. According to him, the term “zero” in the “Inbox Zero Method” doesn’t imply the total number of messages in the Inbox. It indicates the amount of time we spend using and reading the notes in the Inbox. Inbox Zero Method attempts to make people stop stressing and spending a lot of time on emails.
How to apply Inbox zero method to achieve Inbox Zero in 10 days?
Some of the important tips and actions for effective mailbox management are:
- Respond
Read and respond to short emails immediately as soon as they pop up. It stops our inboxes from getting piled up with messages. This will increase productivity and the focus to read as we understand the inbox zero method. - Delete
Delete emails after you have seen and worked on them. Archiving emails is another alternative if we don’t want to delete the emails. It stops us from re-reading them again. This saves both our time and energy while we use inbox zero method. Our inboxes will then become free from too many emails in no time. - Save
Starring is an easy way to archive Gmail inbox zero. As we keep reading the emails one by one, we can quickly ‘star’ the emails that require more attention. The emails get saved up in the starred section of the mail, where we can view them quickly when needed. - Compartmentalize
Create folders and slot your emails as ‘Important,’ ‘Unimportant,’ and ‘Urgent’ ones, according to the purpose they serve, and put them into the allotted folders. You can easily find the emails and read them later. This is one of the most effective tips for email management using the inbox zero method. - Plan a Time-slot
Setting aside a time slot every day to just read and respond to emails is another effective email management tip. Suppose if we allot 3 pm as our ‘Email checking’ time. As we try to follow the same 3 pm slot, our emails will become lesser and lesser. Then, we can reschedule our time to every 3 days or once a week. This will help us achieve the zero Inbox method in no time, and we will also stop procrastinating. - Delegate
Another action is to delegate. Suppose we are checking our office mail account. Instead of postponing difficult emails, we can forward them to those who specialize in that branch of work. This will not only save our time, but the work will be done effectively by the colleagues who are best suited for it.
Email management softwares to enable inbox zero method
Another helpful email management strategy is to seek the help of tools and software to manage your emails. Some tools and software are specially designed to help you manage inbox messages effectively in your busy schedule and make us hit Inbox Zero method. Software and tools can furnish all-around facilities in one go.
Mailman- the best way to use the inbox zero method
Mailman is one of the best email management softwares for managing inboxes. It is a paid software tool, but you can freely access and give a trial run for 21 days. Trial-run it to check its effectiveness. Many email management reviews recommend it as one of the best app for email management that is very flexible and does not get heated quickly.
Features:
- The ‘Do Not Disturb Mode’ feature silences our email notifications for some time. This encourages us to focus on our work. If emails keep popping up, we will quickly get tensed up or lose focus.
- It has ‘Delivery- slots’ where we can receive all the emails together at our convenient time. We can even set the time slot for our email reading period and read them.
- It blocks unimportant emails. But it shows us the blocked list at the end of each day. This will keep our Inbox from getting crowded up with unwanted messages.
- It has a VIP feature where our critical messages get saved up. We can easily access and view it frequently.
Boomerang
Boomerang is another email management software that uses the inbox zero method and has helped millions of email users since 2010. It has plugins for Gmail, Outlook, and mobiles too.
Features:
- Snooze features are available to send emails at a particular time.
- You can pause Inbox to put new email notifications on hold for some time.
- Email game feature to promote email writing among friends.
Unroll Me
This free email management tool allows us to unsubscribe from all the unwanted emails bulkily together. Unwanted emails are like newsletters, unwanted subscriptions, and others. This tool will make us reach Inbox Zero with inbox zero method easily.
Features:
- It arranges subscription emails into ‘rollup’ folders which enables us to easily view and read them.
- It allows us to set time slots to read all these newsletters and subscriptions.
Sortd
Sortd is another helpful email management tool that stops our important emails from getting lost in the vast sea of messages. It helps us organize important emails into columns, all in one place.
As we implement some of the above-given tips, tricks, tools, and email management solutions, we will easily hit ‘Inbox Zero’ in 10 days or even less than it. We will also cultivate good email management skills in organizing and reading emails which will save our time.
Features:
- It helps us organize emails into folders that are easier to view.
- Also keeps track of tasks and email threads.
- It transparently shows us the names of colleagues responding to customers, even in shared accounts.
Use the inbox zero method today!
As we execute some of the above-given tips and tricks like responding to emails, deleting unwanted ones, etc., we will quickly learn efficient email management within ten days. Besides, these tools and apps like Mailman, Boomerang will aid us in decluttering our inbox messages effortlessly, thereby helping us use the inbox zero method.
FAQs
Yes, you can use Google on iPhone using the Safari browser that comes on your device. Using this, you can sign in to your Google account and get a more personalized experience.
To receive the incoming email servers in your account the hostname is imap.gmail.com. You must fill in the details like email address and password to set up under the Incoming Mail Server. The outgoing hostname is smtp.gmail.com.
Click on the top left, tap on the down arrow. Click All. At the top, click more. Mark all as read. Using the mobile app, you can select emails in the series and click on the mark as a read button.
1. To “clean your inbox” you should start to unsubscribe from all the unimportant emails.
2. Use labels to mark emails as per their use.
3. Also, you can clear out the rubbish from your inbox by selecting emails at once and hitting the delete button.
4. You can use filters to automatically avoid unnecessary emails from piling up in your inbox.
