Speaker Notes at https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VuieNSV0GzN4YmmSV9ST8yGxSE25XgkjH7pIy54VxJk/edit

1. Beyond the Inbox
Breaking Free of Email Slavery
Anali Perry - ASU Libraries

2. What's in YOUR inbox?
From http://www.flickr.com/photos/smithsonian/2551232980/

3. It exists!

4. What we'll cover
• Scheduled Email time
• Email triage basics
• Folders
• Filters
• Templates
• Implementation tips
• Email charter

5. Don't be a slave!
Always-on email:
• distracts you from your tasks
• imposes the priorities of others
• enables procrastination

6. Schedule your email time
• Disable notifications
• Check email on your timetable
• Process email - don't just read it

8. Scheduled Email
Some ideas:
• 10 minutes every hour
• 3 times per day
Depends on your workflow and work style - there is no one
right way!

9. Processing Email
1. What does this message mean to
me. Why do I care?
2. What action does this message
require of me?
3. What is the best way to resolve
this message?
From http://www.flickr.com/photos/scoobyfoo/441272764/

10. Email Triage Flow!

11. Email Triage Actions
• Takes < 2 minutes: Respond immediately
• Takes > 2 minutes: defer for later response
• Takes > 15 minutes: generate an action from it
• No need for response: delete it or archive it

12. Folders: The inbox is NOT your to-
do list!
From http://www.flickr.com/photos/nypl/3110130720/

13. Folders
• Needs Action
• Follow Up
• Read Later
• Not to Me
• Archive
From: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nypl/3110117236/

14. Folder tips
1. Add to favorite folders list
2. Change properties to display all message, not just unread
3. Change subject lines (especially for Needs Action)

15. Filters

16. Filters
• Listservs/committees
• Anything with "fw:" in the subject line
• Not sent to you specifically
• Filter by sender
From: http://www.flickr.com/photos/usnationalarchives/3679279416/

17. Templates
Let the computer do the
talking!
From: http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/File:C3PO_EP3.jpg

19. Inbox Zero!

20. Implementation tips
Fresh Start:
Make a Fresh Start folder and move everything older than
21 days to that folder. Then schedule time each week to
process that folder.

21. Implementation Tips
• Lose the guilt: archive or delete anything older than 30
days.
• Divide by half and repeat
• It's okay to start slowly!

22. Maintenance
Weekly Review:
1. Email: Review and prune my Needs Action and Followup
email folders.
– To-do list: Read over my current task list; prune stuff
that doesn’t matter any more; re-prioritize items to work
on next week.
– Projects: Move any “next actions” for each project to
the to-do list; Revise and prune the project list to
reflect current status.
– Calendar: Check out next week’s appointments and
meetings; add any necessary prep work to to-do list.

23. Patience, Grasshopper

24. Email Charter
1. Respect the recipients’ time
2. Short or slow is not rude
3. Celebrate clarity
4. Quash open ended questions
5. Slash surplus CC’s

25. Email Charter
6. Tighten the thread
7. Attack Attachments
8. Use EOM and NNTR ("end of message" & "no need to
respond")
9. Cut contentless messages (e.g. "Great!" or "Thanks!")
10. Disconnect!
From http://emailcharter.org/

26. Credits
• Merlin Mann of 43 Folders (ultimate inbox zero
resources list)
• Gina Trapani of Lifehacker
• David Allen of Getting Things Done

27. Questions?
From: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nationaalarchief/391631389
2/