No Email
I’ve committed myself to only check email a few times a day. It’s been hard, and I haven’t been able to hold out for as long as I would like. However, I’ve cut back significantly, and it’s made a world of difference.
I used to have my email window open at all times. If I kept track I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that I checked my email over 100 times a day. Now, I’ve tried to cut back to only 3 times a day.
I’ve realized a few things from this experiment.
1) Most emails aren’t as important as you’d think they be. Actually, a majority of them aren’t.
2) Almost no one expects an immediate response back. If anything, people are surprised when I respond back to their email within seconds, maybe even a little weirded out.
3) I can actually feel a slight surge of adrenaline when I check my email and I have something in my inbox. This tells me I’m addicted to it, and I hate that. I want to cut down on my reliance.
There are certain times I’ve cheated on purpose. For instance, if I’m sending out a mass email to users, I’ll make sure to have my inbox open so I can respond to any one who replies. In those cases, when you’ve just sent someone and email and they’ve immediately responded to you, that’s a good time to respond right away. I want to make sure I catch those.
However, most of the time people are emailing me cold, and they don’t expect an immediate response. It can wait an hour or two or three while I finish other, more important tasks.
Sidenote: This isn’t an excuse to suck at email. I’m about to go to bed with all my emails answered. I don’t have any left on my plate, and no email has sat around for longer than 24 hours. This is just a wake up call that makes me realize I can be just as responsive this way, while getting a whole lot more done. Less distractions, more accomplished.
