If you have an inbox in your office space for receiving incoming letters, faxes, memos and miscellaneous deliveries, then the chances are that you go through what’s in it on a regular basis and do something with its contents. You may elect to throw some stuff in the bin, file some things, put a few pieces of paper on your desk or leave some to the side as you’re not really sure what to do next! Whatever you choose to do, it’s unlikely that you will leave your inbox over-flowing with stuff, primarily because you want to be able to receive new items whenever they arrive.

In the e-mail world, however, most of us treat our inbox as the great catch-all: a mix of new unopened mails, old rubbish, unanswered questions, out-of-date alerts, mails that we probably need to do something about but aren’t quite sure what to do next etc. The primary reason why we don’t empty our inbox in the same way as we would our office in-tray is that we have almost infinite capacity; there are no obvious consequnces if we don’t do so. In some organisational environments, there are restrictions on how much mail can be stored but with the ever-reducing cost of storage, these are fading away. For example, Google now offers several GBs for their Gmail users.

Even if our inbox capacity is infinite, by not regularly processing our inbox (and I would recommend emptying it on a daily basis) we are clouding our view of what we have to deal with and consequently, increasing our resistance to action (this is bad, bad, bad!).

The art of processing will be covered in detail in another post but essentially involves taking a decision on what we need to do with each mail. Luckily, there are actually a limited number of options: delete (highly recommended), take an action ourselves, delegate or forward to somebody else, file in an appropriate location or defer to a later time for reminder/action. That’s it! You see, it’s not quite as complicated as you might have feared.

Resolve today to rediscover the true meaning of inbox! Here’s my attempt at a re-framed definition: a place where your incoming mail accumulates until you make a decision & take an action on what needs to be done with each item. Having an e-mail inbox is really useful. It allows us to be busy doing real work while all the time collecting our inputs without requiring our attention. But as soon as we forget it’s true purpose, we begin to lose its value.

Not quite. But a fundamental principle that lies within Covey’s first habit is very appropriate here: ‘between stimulus and response lies the freedom to choose’. When it comes to e-mail, it appears many of us have given up that freedom to choose.

Picture the scene. You are enjoying a relaxing bath in the comfort of your own home. Everything is quiet. You feel at ease. Suddenly, you hear the noise of a letter coming through the letterbox and hitting the floor. What is the appropriate response? Do you immediately jump out of the bath to see what might be in that letter with the possibility that you may not return? Do you wait until you have happily ended your bath and happen to be passing by the resting envelope? Do you sit there in the bath thinking about what could be contained in the letter and wondering how bad it might be?

Unfortunately, all too many of us are jumping out of the bath multiple times every day. We have forgotten that we have the freedom to choose our response to that stimulus. Until we re-establish in our minds the appropriate priority for e-mail, then all the efficiency techniques, short-cuts and tricks in the world will merely paper over the cracks.

Being proactive in our approach to e-mail relies on the following:

• Think of your e-mail inbox in the same way as you would a paper inbox that would receive memos and letters from colleagues, friends and locations all over the world. Every now and again, a new item lands in the inbox. You process the items in the inbox at an appropriate time. It generally does not have the highest priority.
• Manage your e-mail. Do not let your e-mail control and manage you. Resolve to learn about the best practices in e-mail management, inbox processing and mail authoring. Then apply them. Do not accept that bad habits cannot be changed.
• Remember that your e-mail is not your job. Many knowledge workers fall into the trap where they believe that if they’re responding efficiently to incoming e-mail, then they are on top of their jobs. This is rarely true. They may not even be on top of their e-mail. Key objectives and outcomes take top priority. E-mail is a tool, a means of communication that helps us get there.

The first key to mastering e-mail is to ensure we have the appropriate perspective. Let’s understand e-mail for what it is. Let’s remember what our priorities are and how the effective use of e-mail can help us reach our objectives. E-mail is not an objective in itself. Let’s use e-mail to facilitate more focused and concentrated work. When we’re in the zone (or in the bath), let’s not jump out of there unless we have a really good reason. And checking our e-mail rarely qualifies.

E-mail has transformed how we communicate in the modern world. If you challenged someone in 1990 to send a detailed memo to multiple people located all over the world, their choices were limited. Most would have produced a paper letter, made photocopies and mailed/posted it to the actual addresses. Others would have faxed that letter to those who were in a position to receive it. Others still would have used a contraption called the telex (remember that?!). Only a few early adopters would have been in a position to use e-mail. How the world has changed.

E-mail is now ubiquitous and is the primary means of business communication. Even text messaging, the little cousin of e-mail, is converging on the same space with the unstoppable progress in wireless networks and devices. Alas, despite all of the wonderful opportunities for communication and the potential for massive business efficiencies, many knowledge workers are crumbling under the strain of ‘managing their e-mail’.

Just reflect on these common observations:

• Many lamenting the thousands of e-mails in their in-boxes
• “I hate going away because when I come back I just have so many e-mails to deal with”
• “Hang on, I just need to check my e-mail”
• “What do you mean you don’t know? You were copied on that e-mail!”
• An e-mail that requires your action but is titled “Re: Fw:fwd:FW:something irrelevant and meaningless”
• How trust diminishes when someone doesn’t reply to a specific e-mail - “maybe they’re angry, or don’t like me?”

Mastering your e-mail is a critical skill for all knowledge workers. Olympians have critical skills that are crucial to success in their sport. They work on these skills repeatedly so that they become as good as they can be. Proficiency in key skills adds up to overall effectiveness and ultimately success in competitions. For knowledge workers, the same principle applies. Mastering e-mail is a key skill, without which overall success will be hindered.

Over the next ten weeks, I will share ten keys to mastering e-mail. These are largely drawn from personal experience over the last decade, coupled with a lot of experimentation and research. Implementing some of these ideas and principles will result in increased feelings of control, less time spent in a state of frustration and greater emphasis on achieving your main objectives. Now, who wouldn’t want some of that?!

Many of us who have spent long periods working on our PCs would agree that it can be easier to perform certain functions when you have a larger display. Some enlightened organisations and individuals have understood this for years and have invested in the most appropriately sized monitors for each workstation. Some use one very large screen, others combine pairs of medium-sized monitors.

GTD Times have highlighted a benchmarking study that has compared the relative performance of a 17-inch and a 30-inch monitor. This study, compiled by Pfeiffer Consulting, measures a range of typical computing tasks, some of which are readily applicable to most users. The example highlighted below is typical of the findings; the time taken to perform something as routine as moving files between folders is seemingly halved by the move from 17-inch to 30-inch.

Given the ongoing reductions in price for larger monitors, it seems there has never been a better time to make an investment. However, it may be difficult to convince those who control the spending in less progressive corporations to splash out. If you live in that world, at least now you have some data to back your argument!

(Note this blog post was compiled, relatively slowly, on a little 15-inch MacBook Pro.) 

If you asked business owners & employers if they would be interested in introducing some minor behavioural changes amongst their employees that had been demonstrated (by studies from NASA and Harvard) to significantly boost productivity, wouldn’t you expect them to be eager to know more? Just watch their demeanours change when you inform them that this breakthrough idea is, in fact, allowing people to take a nap when they need it.

This fantastic piece on the joy of napping was published recently on Boston.com (and flagged to me by the ever-alert Merlin Mann). I’m sure many of you are already fully convinced of the merits of a well-timed power nap - I know I certainly am!

It’s important that we don’t forget that what is most critical is the quality of our output, not necessarily the means of how it gets done. Unfortunately, too many employers would balk at allowing their valued staff an opportunity for a snooze, even with a promise of improved quality of work. One organisation who often receives public criticism for its inefficiency and resistance to change is leading the way in this regard - the German Civil Service.

Feeling a bit tired & weary? Finding yourself making mental errors? Go on - find yourself an alarm and a comfortable location and do the right thing.

Jeffrey Phillips has written an excellent piece on how many workplaces are inherently unsuitable for knowledge work. What is most concerning is that many organisations do not seem to consider the productivity of their people when designing their workspace. Of course, there are exceptions such as the uber-innovator Google (if you haven’t seen this BBC report yet, enjoy!). 

I believe the key point here is that individuals need to be aware of how their environment is impacting their productivity and then take proactive steps to do what they can to change that environment to their own benefit. 

Many people have asked me about the name “Smarter Egg”. Typical questions have been “What does it mean?” or “Where did you get that from?” or “Why Egg?!”.

The origins of the name Smarter Egg came from a brainstorming process, that ebbed and flowed over many months. Ultimately, finding a unique brand name that equally had a unique web presence proved the most significant factor and from this, Smarter Egg was found.

I am not a smarter egg than you. The offerings that Smarter Egg Training & Consulting will provide are intended to help us all become smarter eggs; smarter about what we do, how we do it and how to get the most from what we do.

As for the question, “why egg?!”, one of my favourite phrases to describe someone has always been “he’s a good old egg”. Not sure why we sometimes call people eggs, but we do!

And finally, to answer the title of the post, this article landed in my inbox as I was writing the first post for this blog. If ever there was a sign that I was on the right track, this was it!

The BBC’s Money Programme recently spotlighted the ever-increasing workload associated with managing e-mail. When e-mail emerged as the primary means of business communication over a decade ago, only the most negative of pessimists could have forecast some of the alarming statistics quoted in this show:

• We can spend up to half our working day going through our inbox
• One-third of office workers suffer from e-mail stress
• We spend 52 hours a year just dealing with our junk mail
• Approximately 3 billion messages are sent in the UK each day (using my amateur mathematics, that’s approximately 50 per person!)

Cynics may suggest this is sufficient reason to revert to a telephone and what has now become known as ’snail mail’. However, for the vast majority of the population, it will be impossible to force the genie back into the bottle. The challenge for the rest of us is to develop the key skills that will allow us to manage e-mail effectively.The advice offered in the BBC programme was broken down into five steps.

1. Invest in a spam filter.
2. Target your e-mail
3. Write more carefully.
4. Reduce interruptions.
5. Get training.

The first step is essential. The unpleasant reality at this point in the evolution of the internet is that spam is ubiquitous and multiplying. Once your e-mail address gets targeted, you can’t really afford not to take action.

Steps 2 & 3 could be categorised as ‘good practice’ i.e. behaviours that, if employed by us all, would make our use of e-mail much more productive. This is the electronic age equivalent of holding the door open for fellow citizens. Politeness always has its place.

Step 4 gets to the heart of the core issue with e-mail management: ensure that you are managing e-mail for your own personal benefit and that you do not allow the constant flow of e-mail to manage/distract/disrupt you. This is a topic that we will continue to explore in future blog postings and ultimately, in Smarter Egg training and consulting offerings.

As for the final point, no matter how good or bad we feel we are at managing e-mail, there are always new techniques and practices emerging that can help us be more productive. Never assume that you know everything that needs to be known.

This blog will have regular posts, at least a couple every week and should become a “must subscribe” for those Smarter Eggs out there who like to use blog-readers (or even e-mail) to keep up with the latest thoughts in the blogosphere!

As the Blogroll (a list of other favourite blogs) is built out, it will become clear where my main sources of inspiration come from but you can expect to see a lot of content on themes such as personal productivity, personal organisation & structure, the management of time, actions & energy, overcoming resistance & procrastination and a whole host of crucial behaviours that make significant difference to the success of knowledge workers everywhere.

So, you’re very welcome to come in, pull up a comfortable chair and enjoy! All comments, constructive and otherwise, are welcome.