Ignoring emails at work? That’s crazy talk! Why would I want to do that?
If you’re like most people, the first thing you do when you get to your desk in the morning is open up your email. That makes sense. You want to go through your inbox and see who has been trying to get in contact with you since the previous time you checked your email. Well, I have found found that ignoring emails at work can reduce stress and make for a much more productive work day.
Here’s why:
Emails can be distracting
If you are receiving links from friends, Facebook notifications, or magazine articles, you are likely to fall into the trap of pointless web browsing. If you are starting your workday off by doing the opposite of work, it will make the idea of working seem much more unappealing. Ignoring emails at work, at least in the morning, will actually help avert you from distractions.
Reading your email can dictate your mood for the rest of the day
Think about it. You open up your inbox, and you filter through all of the spam, chain letters from your friends, legitimate business related emails, and whatever else people may be trying to send you. The contents of these emails can shape the mood you will be in for the rest of the day, and odds are, they are not going to put you in a super productive mood every day.
Figure Out What Needs to be Done First
Emails can get in the way of what really needs to be done at the moment. Wait an hour or two to check your email and give yourself some time to figure out the course of your day based on what is important. Don’t let that client complaint or proposal interrupt the flow of things. Everything in your inbox can probably wait a couple hours, so start your day off right.
Give it a shot. You may not like it at first, but it will get easier and it will increase productivity. Once you get yourself into the work mindset, reading emails will be much less distracting and will no longer dictate how your workday will play out. Emails will be coming in all day long, so checking them in the morning won’t help you ‘check’ checking emails off of your list of things to do.