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Blog: The Pile High Club--how NOT to become a member
 Smart Email Strategies
I work mainly in homes, with residential clients. However, one of my few commercial clients has been having me work with her on getting a handle on her emails, so I thought I'd share some of the things I've taught her this past week.
1) When you're not actively managing or working in your email account, shut it off. Those little alarms that tell you when an email has come in are horrible distractions. To stay focused at your desk, disarm the alarm.
2) Only open emails ONCE. I have so many clients who will open an email, read it, decide they don't want to deal with it right now (or can't because of the time they have available or the location they're in when they read it) and then mark it as unread. This is an incredible waste of time because at some point later in the day you are then forced to re-read something you've already read. You can avoid this by setting aside a specific block of time for reading, and dealing with emails. I would say you should do this (like brushing your teeth) 2-3 times a day. Probably in the morning (to see if there were any emergencies overnight), midday, and about an hour before you leave (so you have a chance to attend to any emergencies before the workday ends). If an email can be answered in 2 minutes or less—answer it immediately. If not, you can flag it until that end-of-day session.
3) Create some email folders dedicated to "shoulds". Create a folder called "EOD Follow Up" (EOD = By the End Of Day) and "EOW Follow Up" (EOF = You better have this done by Friday!). The key factor here is that you have to—dur--CHECK THE FOLDERS when you should: by the end of the day or end of the week. Otherwise, they become like the paper file folders in your desk named "Pending" (a VERY loose and dangerous term, as it has no deadline or description).
4) That said, just like in a paper filing system, do not create too many folders in your email. That's how emails get lost and how you end up feeling overwhelmed.
5) Do not print emails or you could become a member of the Pile High Club. It's not necessary. This is the paperless age, after all, right? Use your email folders/filing to keep things you may need to reference again.
6) DELETE emails that have been dealt with. Again, if you read it, respond to it and then close it but don't delete it, you are going to be later re-reading something and asking, "Did I do this?", thus wasting your time. The ultimate goal, of course, is an empty in-box. What a beautiful thing!
posted on: 7/28/2008 10:30:00 AM by Heather Lambie
category: Paper
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The Pile High Club--how NOT to become a member
by Heather Lambie
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About Heather:
My Husband - "Honey, how thin can you spread yourself before you're no longer there?" Me - "I don't know. But I'm in it to win it, so we may have to find out."
Heather's Website:
www.yourhomeeditor.com
Favorite Websites
- The Sartorialist
This site appeases my hunger for all things New York, reminds me of my time there, and gives me great ideas for unconventional looks.
- Toffee To Go
They are located in Tampa, very near me, but they deliver/ship nationally. They have THE BEST toffee EVER. It's buttery, salty, sweet--all my favorite things in one bite.
- The Container Store
I know this is a no-brainer for an organizer...but this place really turns me on!
- The Poetry Foundation
- Because I Said So (blog)
As a mom myself, this mom of 6 (!!!) has me in stitches.
- Michael Buble
If I wasn't happily married, I might be stalking him. Bar none, the best voice and best sense of humor!
Quotes That Move Me
- General H. Norman Schwarzkopf
"The truth of the matter is, you always know the right thing to do. The hard part is doing it."
- Ivern Ball
"Most of us ask for advice when we know the answer but we want a different one."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
"The secret of education is respecting the pupil."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Once you make a decision, the universe conspires to make it happen."
- Abigail Van Buren
"The best index to a person's character is how he treats another person who can't do him good, and how he treats people who can't fight back."
- Dorothy Galyean
"Worry is like a rocking chair. It gives you something to do, but it doesn't get you anywhere."
- Aristotle
"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it."
- Mark Twain
"To be satisfied with what one has; that is wealth. As long as one sorely needs a certain additional amount, that man isn't rich."
- Jackie Kennedy
"If you bungle raising your children, I don't think whatever else you do matters very much."
Places I'm Dying to Visit
- Hawaii
Any how, any way, any time.
- Los Cabos, Mexico
- China
- Japan
- Alaska (via cruise ship)
- Marbella, Spain
Places I've Already Been
- Australia (Sydney)
- New Zealand
- Tahiti, Moorea, Bora Bora
- London
- Paris
Spent only one day here (took the Chunnel from London when I was there) but it was one amazing, beautiful day where I walked the flea markets, visited the Louvre, people-watched and used all 6 senses to experience it.
- Trinidad & Tobago
My husband is from here, so we go several times a year to visit family.
- Italy (Milan, Vicenza)
- Jamaica
Things I'd Like To Do Before I Die
- Run a leg with the Olympic torch before the games begin
- See the monarch butterflies migrate to Mexico
- Ride a horse on the beach (in the water)
- See a prize fight (boxing) in Las Vegas
- Run the NYC Marathon
I ran the Disney Marathon in 2000 (pre-kids). Would love to run another post-kids, to prove I can.
- Have washboard abs.
- Eliminate self doubt.
- Own an apartment in Manhattan.
- Watch the ball drop in Times Square on New Year's Eve.
- Take an RV trip down the coast of California.
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