Email hacks keep you at inbox zero
Going to SXSW or any conference can be intimidating, and afterwards, getting back to normal involves a lot of email fatigue after having to play catch up. In their free ebook, “100 email hacks,” SaneBox suggests the following four email hacks that helps anyone stay on top of your email while at a conference, and they’re not the regurgitated tips that have you checking email from your mobile device every five minutes.
1. Mobile=important, desktop=can wait
When your time is even more limited than usual, it’s especially important to make sure your mobile Inbox is only for important stuff. Processing loads of unimportant emails is particularly hard on mobile. Use OtherInbox, Unroll.me or SaneBox to get them out of your Inbox. Then when you’re back at your laptop, you can process them in bulk.
2. “Urgent” filter
If you’re at a conference or traveling, set up an auto-reply and ask people to resend their email with the word “urgent” in the subject. Then create a filter for it, and only process those emails while you’re super busy. Most people will respect the request, and won’t abuse it win non-urgent emails.
3. Forward itineraries to the day of your trip
If you use SaneBox, Simply forward a travel itinerary or an e-ticket to @sanebox.com (e.g. mar.11@sanebox.com or mar.11.9am@sanebox.com) and we’ll automatically put it in your inbox on (you guessed it) that day. Of course, to be on the safe side you can choose the day before your trip, which is particularly helpful as you’re trying to make it out of Austin completely braindead.
4. Use Awayfind
Awayfind notifies you when you receive an important email via SMS or a native app, so you don’t have to worry about checking email. For example, if a person you have scheduled a meeting with today decides to blow you off, you’ll get an SMS.
The importance of inbox zero
A recent study reveals that email obsession is not only unproductive, but actually has health implications, as the heart rate of a frequent email checker is in constant high alert mode, meaning it does not rest or increase like a normal heart should. According to SaneBox, the average employee receives 200 emails per day, with only about 20 of importance. The company also says that typical office worker spends 13 hours each week sending 110 emails per day.
Clearly, the inbox holds a lot of weight in terms of how productive an office is capable of being. As a full suite of email management tools, SaneBox says they save users an average of 2 hours per week from digging through their inboxes, but it’s not just SaneBox or other tools, it’s actually implementing a plan to battle email and avoid fatigue, as outlined above.
