Are you beating the time bandits?
I started 2010, with a request to everybody at IRIS: “Let’s make it an E Mail Light Year”.
We all (not just at IRIS I’m sure) spend way too many hours sending/receiving e-mail, particularly being copied on e-mails that we probably don’t even need or the worst sin of all, participating in or being copied on an e-mail argument when it’s easier just to talk. All businesses need an E-mail Etiquette and so we set one up last year.
I’ve had a very full week of meetings this week, what with Board meetings, Business Reviews, Product Reviews, interviewing people etc, so I’m delighted to end the week in the knowledge that my e-mail inbox has at least reduced a bit, rather than a mountain of them to tackle.
We all need to beat the time bandits that are stealing our most precious commodity, our time. How are you getting on with tackling them?
Posted: February 26th, 2010 under Martin Leuw.
Comments
Comment from Sue Cohen
Time March 2, 2010 at 1:39 pm
Interesting – using rules and filters helps to decide how much you read; taking the time to (politely) decline to receive further updates; advocating the use of the telephone and meetings for short discussions instead of bouncing emails back and forth.
Just encouraging people within the same organisation to talk about the issue helps – it seems to creep up on them.
There are also specialists who can help management teams change their behaviours and create a new culture – usually starts at the top.
Martin – where you lead by example, others will follow …
Comment from Ian Price
Time March 2, 2010 at 2:48 pm
It’s refreshing to hear of a company leading on this issue from the top. I hope the Etiquette works – I have a set of “top tips” derived from years of (painful) experience which I publish on my site. Feel free to compare and contrast:
Comment from Jim Prior
Time March 8, 2010 at 11:29 am
Excellent Email tips document Ian. Interesting about the “virtual presenteeism” point, but I think it applies to in-hours equally as well as out of hours. Distractions: I’d love to know how much time and focus is lost due to new email notifications, totalling centuries probably!
Comment from Steven James
Time February 28, 2010 at 11:57 pm
In the last 6 months I have seen a massive reduction in e-mail initiated distractions. The biggest solution was reducing the number of emails I was included in with client visibility.
I often find people running technical problems by me for input. I am delighted to assist if I can give a quick answer, but if your name is left on the outbound response to the client, then the client is often inclined to include you in every email they ever send in the future. I know this well as I am guilty of doing the same thing with suppliers who have helped me so it’s obviously human nature.
A combination of this reduction and increasing use of the Skype/Phone combination has meant my inbox is more relaxed. A quick check of the past weeks emails shows mainly content for reporting, meetings and communicating with clients that I am directly responsible for.