In 2021, we are now busier than ever before. This calls for systematic management in all aspects of our work. Email management is one such area that requires constant attention to make sure that we can tame our inbox. This need gave rise to the concept of Inbox zero. With the below tips and email management softwares, achieving inbox zero is now very easy!
8 ways of achieving Inbox zero
Here is all you need to know about achieving inbox zero through these 8 easy tips!
- Keep your email tab closed when doing deep work
The constant notifications are the root of all evil. These notifications not only distract us from the tasks at hand but also waste precious time. Keeping the email inbox open on display in our browser thus makes way for more notifications. Even if we decide to not pay heed to these notifications, our mind is naturally disturbed.
Moreover, the open email or the inbox app gets us curious to check it out over and over. This further lowers our productivity. Closing this tab and app can help us focus better and produce better work while achieving inbox zero. - Retrospect your email management habits
Keeping a close eye on our email management habits is an important time management tip. Tracking the number of times we open our email inbox, the amount of time we spend processing our emails, and the amount of time we waste in deciding how to respond to emails, are all key factors. Following a pre-set schedule for your, everyday email processing habits can go a long way as a tool for time efficiency. - Get things done: This holds true for email management too!
Once you are through with responding to all emails, there are only two things left to do. You could either delete or archive them. Deleting or archiving is the sure-shot way to achieving inbox zero. You can especially delete emails that include spam or newsletters without any hesitation. You can also delete work-related emails with discretion if you think you won’t need them again.
If there is any doubt about whether one should or shouldn’t delete one’s work emails, it would be safer to archive them and still manage to achieving inbox zero. - The Golden 2-minute rule of Email Management
The amount of time we take to respond to an email, ultimately determines how efficient email management is. To tackle this problem better, we must try to follow a thumb rule called the ‘2-minute rule’ while achieving inbox zero. This rule advises us that when we come across an email that will take under 2 minutes to reply to, we must do it right away. Thus you avoid any procrastination as you get one thing done from your to-do list. - The art of delegation for too many emails is the key to achieving inbox zero
We often receive emails that might be suited better for someone else. This could be either because the email task is from their expertise or because they have a good track record with tasks of that type. Either way, delegating that particular task can result in a better quality of work. Hence, forwarding the email to a more appropriate person can not only empty your inbox but also save you some time. But do make sure that you follow up with the person and get the task done in time. - Organize Yourself – Mark important emails
Now that we have seen the 2-minute rule, we know how to respond to quick emails. But we cannot respond to all our emails in 2 minutes right? What do we do about the emails that we know will take longer? We can tackle these in due time when we are done with the task we have at hand and get to achieving inbox zero. In the meanwhile, we can file these emails separately in a folder that is specific to such emails. Thus when you can entirely focus on them, you won’t have to search through the entire inbox for those few emails. This is an email management tip that can also be used for better time efficiency. - Keep alarms to reply to emails
It is easy to procrastinate over getting done with the major chunk of emails that we file away in a different folder. But it is a responsibility that one must get through with. To ensure that you don’t delay your emails to the next day, always aim towards taking care of all your emails on the day itself. This includes replying, delegating and even deleting. Thus you make sure that you don’t add up to your burden the next day while you stay on top of your email management and suceed in achieving inbox zero. - Email management tools
Taking care of too many emails can be an overwhelming task. Proper email management can easily burden the already huge pile of tasks that we have lined up for ourselves every day. Email management softwares like Mailmanhq can help you in employing the above techniques in your email management strategy. Getting well versed with what your email management needs are, makes it very easy in achieving inbox zero.
Why Mailmanhq is the best email management tool for achieving inbox zero?
With over 6500 plus happy users from across the globe, Mailmanhq has gained a lot of attention from word-of-mouth references. Our users include people like Ankur Warikoo, Brenden Mulligan, and many more people who recommend us as the easiest and the best way to achieving inbox zero.
1. Unsubscribe from newsletter and spam
2. Use folders and filters to organize emails.
3. Set a schedule to process emails.
4. Set a timer to control the amount of time you spend in the inbox.
5. Respond immediately to emails that can be answered in 2 minutes.
1. Set filters and inbox rules.
2. Use folders and labels to categorize emails.
3. Unsubscribe from spam.
4. Delete all spam emails.
Merlin Mann, a productivity expert, coined the term Inbox Zero in 2007.
You can delete unimportant emails like spam and newsletters without any hesitation. Archiving emails is another way of clearing your inbox without losing the emails forever.
