Do you get so overwhelmed that you want to throw your arms in the air and give upOr, even worse, do you want to throw something at your poor computer Here are five suggestions to help you get back control of your email - and keep it These techniques are easy to use and effective. So, put your arms down, and get back to work.



1. Filter it To limit the time you waste reading junk emails and spam, you could use a filter program. This is a system that weeds out emails based on subject lines and content. They can be effective, but use caution. They can filter out too much. Some filter programs will put the questionable messages in a separate folder, which you can review. Of course, that will take some discipline on your part to view the messages periodically and ensure that nothing important was trapped. Sign up for a f.r.e.e mini-workshop on email etiquette at our website.

2. Determine when to unsubscribe. If you subscribe to numerous newsletters, quotes-of-the-day, etc., take the consistent and significant test. When the item appears, do you "consistently" read it That is, do you read most of the issues?Secondly, does it past the "significant" test Do you read quite a bit of the information and find it useful If you answered yes to both questions, stay on the mailing list. Otherwise, remove yourself.

3. Prioritize! Make a conscious choice regarding when you'll review email. Once per day may be sufficient for some, while others may need to check for messages several times. Does your job really require you to be glued to the computer screen In the six years I've been speaking and writing about email communication, I've never found anyone who had to be as connected as he/she thought! Email is an invaluable tool that helps you in conducting the communication portion of your job. You control this tool. Don't stop what you're doing every time a new email arrives. That's inefficient. If you can't resist the mystery shrouding the new message, turn off the tone that tells you a new message has arrived.

4. Make a time management plan. When drafting your plan, remember to include not only the time you spend reading messages, but also the time you spend responding to messages. Personally, when I check email in the morning, I catch myself reading junk mail and typing lengthy responses to friends or colleagues. The next thing I know, the most productive part of my day is wasted. To avoid this, I review my email in the morning and wait to respond to "non-essential" messages until mid-afternoon, which is my unproductive (i.e., "sleepy" time. Test your email skills by taking a fun quiz at our website.

5. Implementation. Once you've created a plan for reading email messages, implement it. Any time management plan will be effective if you'll simply use it.