| | | | | the e-mail that just landed in your inbox. |
| Last night I got the chance to relax on a beautiful | | | | |
| backyard porch home to a number of potted tomato | | | | How to Combat Chronic E-mail Checking |
| plants, herbs and ivy – even the occasional rabbit. | | | | |
| Trees and singing birds surround its high walls - it is a | | | | Commit to checking your e-mail only when you have |
| little haven of nature in the middle of the city. | | | | time to process your e-mail as well (i.e. deleting, |
| | | | | delegating, deferring, and actually doing the work) |
| Being from the country, I appreciate any chance I get | | | | |
| to ‘commune with nature,' a practice critical to my | | | | Schedule specific e-mail processing sessions |
| mental well-being. As I sat there grateful for my good | | | | throughout the day and stick to them |
| fortune, I couldn't help but think, "Wow this is beautiful! I | | | | |
| wonder if I have any new e-mail!" | | | | Be aware of how often ‘checking e-mail' |
| | | | | accomplishes nothing expect distracting you from |
| Wait – What?! Am I for real? Did I just think about | | | | productive work or sending you off on another task of |
| checking e-mail in the middle of communing with | | | | lesser priority |
| nature? It took me a minute to realize there was | | | | |
| anything even wrong with this. Constant connectivity is | | | | Remember that it takes on average 15 - 20 minutes to |
| so ingrained into our daily lives that it is hard to be | | | | get back to task after being interrupted (like checking |
| aware of the danger in this tendency. | | | | e-mail) |
| | | | | |
| How can I sit in a little nest of nature and desire to | | | | Turn off those seductive, flashy e-mail notifiers on your |
| distract myself with spam email and business | | | | computer and blackberry – take back control over |
| e-newsletters? How has it become so hard to shut | | | | technology! |
| down and shut off? | | | | |
| | | | | Decide when your inbox is ‘open' and ‘closed', |
| I believe it has something to do with our basic desire | | | | make this public if necessary |
| as humans to feel connected to one another. Because | | | | |
| of this need it was very easy for mobile, omnipresent | | | | Set the precedent for your e-mail responsiveness – |
| technology to pervade our daily routines and establish | | | | remember that the fastest responder almost never |
| ‘checking e-mail' - nearly immediately - as a regular, | | | | equals the most productive employee |
| hard-wired habit. | | | | |
| | | | | Teach others how you wish to be treated – if you |
| Read on for my tips on how best to combat chronic | | | | always respond on Sundays or late at night, you will |
| e-mail checking. I cannot promise you that it is an easy | | | | continue receiving e-mails on Sundays and late at night |
| transition (as I am clearly still struggling with this one) | | | | |
| but what I can promise is that being present where | | | | "Give whatever you are doing and whoever you are |
| you are – in nature, in a meeting, with loved ones | | | | with the gift of your attention. |
| – will have a far, far greater impact on your life then | | | | |