Merlin Mann, the lifestyle guru that invented the concept of inbox zero in the early noughties, claims people took his idea far too literally. But at the threshold of another decade, he believes there is a second chance to get it right. So rather than trying to tackle ten years of bad email behaviour, read his simple steps to enter an inbox zero existence.
Accept that almost everything in your life is an inbox
Your inbox is literally anything that puts a demand on your time: your personal inbox, social media, messaging apps, letters, and even phone calls.
- If you you part from the assumption that it is impossible to handle everything, you can focus on what matters to you.
Don’t be an inbox dick
Don’t be afraid to confront people who try to bombard you with information that you don’t consider important
- Make sure you are not guilty of calling someone straight after sending an email or becoming angry if they don’t respond to your Twitter message right away
Whatever you do, don’t delete everything
Instead, narrow down the most important things in your inboxes and focus on those things
- Check your email at set times every day, such as when you first walk into the office, at lunch time, and before you leave
Allow yourself time to switch off
Take inspiration from a time before emails and mobile phones and switch off periodically.
- Whatever you do, don’t check your messages, not even on Twitter. Remember that feeling when you were young and your phone was your only constant, and you didn’t have Wi-Fi.
