It’s National Clean Inbox week. So it’s a great time to hit reset on our email habits that may need a little – or even a lot – of fine tuning!
Email management continues to be a major pain point for admins and their executives alike. Inboxes explode when we don’t have a good system in place for processing the mail out of our inbox and into a task (to-do item), calendar appointment (meeting at a set time/date), or folder (reference item). Most of us treat our inboxes like our to-do list instead of like a mail box. Changing that single mindset can entirely shift our approach to inbox management.
When I became a Certified Productivity Pro Consultant with Laura Stack, I learned an entirely new way to work in Microsoft Outlook that finally made my inbox make sense. Becoming a power user of the email tool you’re employing is the first place to start.
I learned things that Outlook could do that I didn’t realize or was afraid to try until I practiced it for myself. And it does take practice and a willingness to change how you work – but the end result is totally worth it! You don’t have to worry about things falling through the cracks or dropping off of your radar.
If inbox management is a struggle for you, I highly recommend this webinar from our training on demand library: Maximize Your Productivity by Mastering Workflow with Microsoft Outlook. You can preview the session and learn more about what it covers. It also includes a full demonstration of several of the features I explain in the webinar, so you can see exactly how it works, then practice it for yourself with greater confidence.
In this week’s feature article, I share a few tips on how to maintain inbox zero. We’re also sharing some amazing tips to tidy up your inbox (without losing anything you need!) on our Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn pages.
It’s easy to let our old email habits creep back in. I still fight my old tendencies – especially when things get busy. But the good news is that I manage to pull myself out of the tailspin quicker now and recognize the triggers that cause a pile up so I can be more proactive in maintaining a manageable inbox. With a little practice, you will be able to win the email battle, too!
Supporting your administrative success,
Julie Perrine
P.S. Don’t just organize your inbox – get your entire workspace in order with our free 5-day challenge! Learn more and register here.
