Managing the Inbox: Email Tips (and Permission to Delete)
Inboxes are overwhelming. (Image generated by AI)
When I first started in the professional world email was relatively new to the scene. You also don’t get too many emails when you’re a new associate. You may even get excited when someone remembers you exist and sends you an email. If this is you, stop reading and exit. What follows may scare you…
Ok if you are still here, I’m sorry. Email is such a mess, isn’t it?! We have all experienced the dumpster fire inbox after an extended time off. Some of us may experience this after only a day away from the office. Or maybe your inbox resembles the laundry baskets sitting around my house, piled full and demanding your attention, yet you’ve learned to over lookthem (no judgement).
How are we to survive this new digital age of emails piling in while we are attending meetings? And how can we truly disconnect and enjoy the time away we need if we know there will be a massive pile of emails waiting for us on the other side? Over the years I have worked on giving myself permission to be a bit ruthless with my inbox, a set of rules that help me cut through the layers of crap and find the emails that need my attention quickly and effectively. I hope they can help you as well.
Group by Energy Levels
I used to read, reply, and file my emails away in designated folders manually. It was adorable, let me tell you. Every project had a folder, and every email had a home. If an email mentioned multiple projects, I would copy the email and file two copies. Can you imagine a world where I created more emails? Those were the days…
As my email volume swarmed to volumes reflecting flies on a fresh pile of crap, my manual file system broke down. I had to rethink how I categorize and file my emails, and it needed to be automated. I began to notice emails that I skimmed, emails that I ignored, and emails that took more time - grouping by energy levels.
As for automation, Mail rules are the way to go. These filter the emails I receive automatically into pre-set folders based on the type of email I have coming through. Look for patterns on shared mailboxes, frequent communications you skim past, and what really sucks your time. The idea is to group items by what energy is required of you. Calendar invites are easy, quickly processing invitations based on my availability and moving along. I’m not asking my brain to shift directions between calendar management and complex responses. It’s a simple “yes, no, maybe, delegate”. Occasionally asking “what the heck is this?” when I read an invite, but that’s a future blog... Corporate Communications are another set of simple emails, as these require ingesting information, not responding. These should be specific to you and your needs, but here is a sample of what works for me:
Calendar Invites
Calendar Responses
My Direct Reports
My Leaders
Corporate Communications
A few folders for groups I work with frequently (by team or by project)
The emails that take more time, say from your manager(s)? Those require more energy, so tackle that folder when you are motivated. This is also where the handy flag/archive practice comes into play. I know there are fancy connections to other tools to create a to-do list, but I personally haven’t successfully managed this skill (yet), and I still use one of those notebooks with a pen (Yes, I have gray hair). I may try to modernize again in the future, but I know who I am - that to-do list sits idle in an app like leftovers sit in the back of my fridge. That is why I stick to the flag and the notebook.
The Flag
Once you start working through the emails you need a quick visual queue to know what needs your attention again, and most email systems have a flag option. I don't use categories or anything beyond a single red flag, but you do you. If an email is going to take a lot more effort than a few minutes to reply or forward/delegate, then flag it and come back. Again, the key here to maintain a low energy sorting mindset where you are skimming and categorizing, saving the heavy lifting for when you have this weight out of your inbox.
The Archive
When you accumulate a lot of read emails that no longer serve an immediate purpose, send them to archive. While I may use an old school notebook to track my to-do lists, I don’t use an old school file to find relevant emails when someone asks. A few targeted search terms will usually pull it right back from the archive. Search is a great way to clean your inbox as well:
Sort by “read” and “unflagged”
Highlight and send them to archive
Archiving After Time Off
This one is particularly important for anyone returning from an extended parental or medical leave. After a few weeks or months away, you’re probably in over your head. This is where I give you permission to skip reading some of those emails and send them to archive, especially if you sent automatic replies and anyone emailing you should have reached out to the contact you listed weeks ago.
Pick a timeline that you are comfortable with, perhaps you save anything sent in the last week or two. Then you will select emails older than your chosen timeline and send them to archive. Still unsure?
They’ll still be there, unread in your archive. You aren’t deleting them.
If you manage to tackle the first set of emails you can revisit them, although you’ll likely have new emails or tasks that require your attention. That is OK.
You’ll have them to reference if someone asks you about them in the future, and you can use the search function to excavate them.
The CC and the Mention
It should be common knowledge with email etiquette that anyone who needs to take action in an email should be in the “To:” line of the email, not the “Cc:”, however we all know someone who loves to reply all on their emails (I am certainly guilty). If your email system allows you to mention people utilizing the lovely “@”, then you can double down on making sure your request is visible. On the front end this practice should help you get more work done and avoid the dreaded meeting that could have been an email.
On the back end this practice helps you focus in on tasks assigned to you. The first sort I love to use is searching for your name in “Cc:” - the majority of these are FYI emails and should not require much attention. Treat this like a newsfeed, quickly skimming and sending to Archive. You’ll be surprised how quickly this trims down the volume in your inbox. If you have time to take note of the individuals requesting actions of people in the “Cc:” box, then go ahead and take note for an “Email 101” session. Or send them this post (shameless plug) - I’ll tell them on your behalf.
The second search is for any emails that mention you; I know Outlook has this function, hopefully your email system has something similar. These are clearly the employees who know how to get things done. A parade should be held in their honor AND their email deserves your attention. Work down this list with care, ensuring you aren’t skimming and are taking action or noting the follow up however you track to-dos.
Your Favorite Children
Sort by people you like the most (kidding) – sort by people you need to respond to first. Your team, your leaders… knock those off your list. Depending on your role in your company there are individuals you know you should catch up with first; these are individuals you work with frequently. If you’ve set up your mail rules to divide them into folders this next step to work down your inbox should be easy, simply pick your favorite child or group, and prioritize from there.
Marketing
My marketing professors will be so sad to read this next tip, but I hope by confessing this next practice it reduces my email volume: Marketing emails get ignored. Again, this is where it is great to notice patterns. For example, my company has several email extensions for employees, including one generic one that works if you toss in someone’s “Firstname.Lastname” followed by “@genericextension.com” and people think they are so slick having hacked our email addresses. Oh, but my dear LinkedIn stalkers, this is how I know that I was not the person who gave you my email address. And yes, you get filtered out.
The second amazing thing my company employed is adding a header to emails to warn us “You don’t often get an email from…” - this is another useful search term. If you’ve been paying attention, you all know what to do.
Drafts
If you often get distracted SQUIRREL… you probably have some emails in your draft folder that need to get sent. Don’t forget to check there and clean it out. I have no shame in sending old drafts with a sincere apology and confession that I found a reply to them in my drafts, people usually understand. You might also be doing them a favor by sharing that they aren’t alone and prompting them to check their own drafts.
Summary
Now that we’ve covered the basics of how I manage my inbox, and because you won’t want to read through my entire summary above when you use this list, here is my “quick hit list” to sort through emails and save you from hiding behind an extra vacation day to dig out. Feel free to snag, edit, and use it:
Archive anything you’ve read/handled/delegated – get it out of your face. (Revisit this step often)
Sort by “read” and “unflagged”
Highlight and send them to archive
Flag anything you need to come back to and takes more than a few minutes.
Pick a date and send them to archive, I like to use anything >1 month (use what you are comfortable with).
They’ll still be unread if you have anxiety about never having a list to go back to (you won’t, you’ll forget about them or never have time for them).
You’ll have them to reference if someone asks you about them, but they are off your plate.
Sort by ones you are mentioned in – clearly these senders know how to work an email and deserve your time.
Sort by people you like the most (kidding) – sort by people you need to respond to first. Your team, your leaders… knock those off your list.
Sort the ones you are cc’d on (Search with your name in the cc’d to box) and make those a quick hit – skim, mark as read, archive and move along.
Rarely do people need an action from you and leave you in the cc box. These people don’t know how to email, and should probably be sent to archive, but if you’re feeling kind you can look for these mistakes.
Sort out the ones with “You don’t often get an email from” and send those to someplace fast.
These may have a banner at the top or are usually people who took your first name.lastname and added a generic extension to make it to your inbox.
MARKETING. Yuck. These are usually best honored with a drop in the junk folder or blocked.
Repeat until you get to 0, then work through the flagged emails.
Occasionally check your drafts folder, it is amazing what gets wedged in there.
Happy Emailing!
Did I Miss Something? I often write with my own life experiences and my email system in mind, but you are always in my heart. If you have perspectives to share, or would like to add your own thoughts to managing email in the workplace, please reach out to me at ChrissieMeasamer@gmail.com. I would love to have you as a guest blogger or interview you for an upcoming piece.
