Is your inbox overflowing? Open it now. How many emails do you have sitting in there? 2? 12? 52? 200? 500? How many of those are still relevant and require actioning today? Interesting question isn’t it!

Controlling your email is like any other aspect of your job, you need to be really good at it and if you’re not, you need to learn some new strategies so you can become better. Letting your email get out of control is no different to having piles of paperwork spread from one end of your desk to the other. It’s messy, it’s disorganised, it causes you to lose time searching for things and it ends up causing you stress.

How long does it take to delete an email? A second, half a second maybe? Think about how quick this is compared to how long it takes to search for an email from three or even ten days ago that’s now lost in the black hole of your inbox.

5 ideas for gaining back control of your inbox

Idea# 1 - Answer your email only after you’ve planned your day
It’s important to prioritise your action list and make sure you know what you’ve got on for the rest of the day before you go spending time addressing a pile of emails. Could some of the emails sitting in your inbox be left until later in the morning or early afternoon? Many emails can wait to be answered later on that day, especially if the email is not urgent or important. Remember that if an email is really urgent, most people will call you as well.

Idea # 2 - Turn off your email notifier
Don’t you have enough beeps and buzzers in your life? Don’t let the beep of the email notifier distract you every few minutes. You need to keep control your email and not the “bing... you have new mail” control you. Check email when you are ready, not when you hear the “bing”.

Idea #3 - Use A,B,C,D,E when checking your email
In an earlier chapter of this book I described Triage. Why not apply Triage to your emails? Work on the A and B email first and leave the C email until later. Remember, D is for delegate and E for eliminate.

Idea # 4 - Clear your inbox at the end of each day
Set aside five minutes at the end of your day to clear out your inbox and organise your remaining emails.

It may seem like an annoying chore at a time, but you will be thankful for it in the morning when you have a clean slate to start with. It’s also a good way to make those last few minutes of the day go by faster.

Idea #5 - Set up folders within your email program
Make folders for everything and everyone. Give each of your clients and associates their own folder. Have a ‘To Do’ folder, a ‘Miscellaneous’ folder, an ‘Accounts’ folder and something like a ‘Travel’ folder.

Have as many folders as necessary; it will make your life a whole lot easier when you’re trying to clear your inbox at the end of the day, as well as when you’re searching for older emails.

To learn more about managing your time and priorities, visit or go to