If you are like most of us, you get hundreds of email messages a week. They range from the important to completely unwanted spam. Even with filters, you are probably getting a lot more email than you can possibly read – and still have a life.
Short of writing another expose on subject I would recommend you start with “Getting Things Done” or “The Four Hour Work Week”. These books have semi-complementary strategies for organizing the information coming into your life. There are good ideas on both fronts, and I’m sure you will be able to come up with a an approach that works for you.
New Tech
I recently took the plunge and went from a regular cell phone to a blackberry. This sort of forces the issue if you haven’t dealt with it before. If you aren’t familiar with what I am talking about, sorting email via Blackberry involves a lot of thumb action to filter through the stuff you might have otherwise quickly review and delete on a computer screen.
Depending on your email client you may be able to prefilter some of these messages so they go to folders without showing up on your blackberry.
Another suggestion, aside from unsubscribing from things you really don’t read, is to setup a different email account for things you would like to review if you have time. Rerouting these emails does a couple things. It forces you to think about what you are reading, it reduces your email volume, and it will make you more efficient. It also puts them all in one place in case you really do get around to reading them.
