Coping with Email Overload By Peter Bregman | 4:05 PM April 26, 2012

A few weeks ago I returned from a week-long technology free vacation with my family; no computer, no phone,
and no email. When I got to the office and checked my computer, I had hundreds of email messages waiting for
me. I took a deep breath and started working on them. Three hours later, my inbox, which had a whole week’s
worth of messages, was empty. Contrast that with my experience the next day when I spent more than three hours
on email. I realized that I discovered a better email checking strategy that day I returned from vacation.

~Two Main Problems~

1. Checking email constantly can be misused as a distraction from stress and as entertainment:
I used email to distract myself and whenever I felt stressed I checked my email. I could be writing a report, bored
on a phone call, standing in an elevator, or frustrated in a meeting and I’d check email. It was an ever-present,
easy access way to avoid my feelings of discomfort. It was enjoyable because I always wondered what was waiting
for me in my inbox. It also felt legitimate since technically I was “working.” I felt I needed to make sure I didn’t
miss an important message or fail to respond in a timely fashion; but it became a serious addiction. If we don’t
control our email habit, it will control us.
2. Checking email using multiple devices randomly throughout the day wastes time:
Email constantly pours in and like addicts we check it incessantly from Blackberries, PC’s, laptops, and iPhones.
This draws us away from meetings, important work, personal time, or whatever is right in front of us. However,
it’s not just the abundance of email that’s our problem, it’s the inefficiency of how we deal with it. Each time we
check our email at random times of the day, we lose time pulling out our phones, loading the email, reading new
emails without taking action on them, and re-reading those to which we haven’t yet responded. Then, we go back
to our computers and we read the same emails yet again, wasting even more valuable time.

~Three Main Solutions~

1. Use only 1 device to check email: We are more efficient when we answer email in bulk at our computers. We
move faster, can access files when we need them, and link more quickly to other programs such as our calendars.
Also, when we sit down for the express purpose of doing emails, we meet our email heads on. We are more
focused, more driven, and waste no time in transition from one activity to another. I no longer use my phones for
email unless I’m away from my computer all day.
2. Schedule specific time to check email: I bulk process my email three times a day in 20-minute increments;
once in the morning at 9am, once at noon, and once before shutting down my computer at 7pm. I use a timer and
when it beeps 20 minutes I close my email program. Outside my designated email times I do not access my email
from any device until my next scheduled email session. When the urge to check email arises, I focus on whatever
I’m doing, even if what I’m doing is just waiting for something.
3. Eliminate worry about “Urgent” emails: What if someone needs an immediate response? Worrying about
that is precisely the kind of misguided rationalization that reinforces our addiction. I haven’t angered anyone with
my new process. In fact, I don’t think anyone has noticed my mini email vacations because responding to an email
within a few hours is perfectly reasonable. In the off chance that someone really needs a response within minutes,
they’ll reach me by texting, calling, or coming to see me in person. Finally, I have also managed to reduce my
CC’s by getting off most CC lists which has significantly reduced the quantity of received emails.

In conclusion, I’m now spending only an hour a day on email; a third of my previous daily amount of three hours.
I have saved two hours a day which can be used for higher value activities. I’m much more efficient since I go
through my email faster and with more attention. I no longer make mistakes like copying the wrong person or
sending an email before finishing it. Email is no longer wasting my day and my mind is now clearer, more
perceptive of what’s around me, more focused, and more creative. In short, I’m more productive now that
I’ve learned to cope with email overload.
Coping with Email Overload

1. How many hours a day do you spend reading, sending, and deleting emails?

2. What percentage of your emails are CC’s? What percentage of CC’s are actually important?

3. What strategies from the text could you use to reduce the time you spend on emails?