Have you ever been burdened by too many emails? I think every person reading this can relate!
Studies have shown that checking email outside of traditional work hours makes one exhausted emotionally. Living in a technology-driven world, email is easy to send off at any time of day, especially when you remember your forgot one little detail and wake up in the middle of the night but this is the underlying thing most of us don’t think about. The recipient of the email might think you are “on” outside of hours and then expect you to respond back at those same times. There is something healthy about boundaries. Being “on” at all hours of the day is stressful in itself.
A study done by three American universities on just shy of 300 working adults says this practice of emailing at all hours of all days, causes emotional exhaustion and can potentially hurt your work-family balance.
This isn’t just about sending off emails but it could also apply to the anticipation of receiving emails you are waiting for.
Your satisfaction with balance between work and personal life is important for health and overall well-being. If the pressure to do email all the time is coming from your boss or you, a heart-to-heart is in order. Here are a few tips to managing your inbox better.
- Filter all junk mail to the delete folder.
- Or easier yet, unsubscribe completely.
- Set up a free email account for newsletter or subscription email so it never hits your inbox. You can go look for it when you need it.
- Have all client emails filtered into an ASAP folder and check it only on your work hours. If clients are sending something after hours, you’ll get it the next day.
- Treat emails like paper, process them in priority order. If you answer every email as it comes in, you’ll be in reaction mode vs. proactive mode.
- Check email often during your hours and respond back as quickly as you can.
- Keep your inbox cleaned out so it is not so overwhelming.
Wishing you some peace and quiet in your off hours so that you can be, have and do what your heart desires.
Much Success! Have an outstanding day!
Sara