How many emails do you have? I mean total emails? How far back do your emails go? Why do you feel you need/ want this many? Are you able to find what you really need in your email box? How long does it take?
Why does this have anything to do with decluttering? After all no one can see your electronic clutter? – Well no one can see your undie drawer either – and doesn’t it feel better to have that cleaned out?! I can also venture to guess that you have many more emails than you do undies.
Let’s get this email thing sorted out.
1. Start with your total number – all the folders. Write it down. You remember paper right?
2. Spend 5 minutes deleting – look at a clock and make yourself spend 5 minutes deleting emails that do not need to be opened. Be brave. Start at the promotions, social, or the very oldest emails if you need to.
3. Spend another 5 minutes deleting emails that you need to open but can decide quickly on. You know the promotions that look great but are probably expired, or an invitation that you need to reply to, or the one with the phone number you need to add to your contacts, or any email that will take less than a minute to get rid of.
4. Now spend 5 minutes on a hard email or two.
5. Last but NOT least – spend 5 minutes unsubscribing from emails. Take a serious look at your promotional type emails that you just deleted (figuratively – cause they are already deleted) or any emails that are junking up your inbox (not the ones from AMAZINGLY SIMPLE, please) and UNSUBSCRIBE. It takes a few minutes but will save you an endless amount of time later.
Now look again at your total email number and feel good about yourself!!
I started with 181 and now have120. I like to keep it under 100 total but I am doing this in the middle of the night and my daughter and husband (who use my email and don’t have their own personal accounts, have a bunch of emails that need to be handled and I am NOT waking them to do it. Plus, in all honesty, I didn’t spend the whole 20 minutes – probably about 10 – I pretty much know where my email stands. My emails go back to my daughters First Communion pictures in 2010. If I set up a picture file (which I don’t know how to do) I would be able to remove about half of my emails. In any case, I think I will be right around 100 in the morning.
Repeat this process as many times as needed – Your email should be helping you, not weighing you down. This whole process takes only 20 minutes!
That’s it, the AMAZINGLY SIMPLE way to declutter your email inbox!
simply,
bridgette
AMAZINGLY SIMPLE 