Email: wonderful technological innovation or necessary evil?

My answer varies depending on the day. What’s your response?

Perhaps today is not a good day to ask me. You see, I have just finished a marathon session of answering emails and other electronic inquiries, both for my own business and for another project I am currently working on. Earlier this evening, I spent 90 minutes at the computer and on email - a marathon session to say the least. I almost broke my own rule of working consistently on a project without taking a BRAC break (taking a break every 90-120 minutes to renew energy) in my efforts to be proactive and handle the constant influx of emails to my inbox.

No reason to expound on why I had 150+ emails (all real, no spam) to answer…suffice it to say it has been a very busy couple of days. It’s time for a VA to help me answer emails! Interested? Please send me an email.

So, I finished this marathon session in a slightly grumpy mood. Sure, I did feel a great sense of accomplishment in being able to say I had responded in a timely manner to several important emails and requests. But, I felt frustrated and a bit irritable. Why? I guess I was reminded of how email can literally consume your life, if you don’t tame your inbox. More about that in a minute…

I know I am not alone. My clients tell me about their out-of-control inboxes and their constant fight to manage their email. On a positive note, one client told me during his session on Tuesday that he whittled his inbox down to zero - an incredible accomplishment for a president of a very successful company. Kudos to you, my dear client!

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