Struggling for Inbox Zero? ...Don't Bother

The holy grail we all dream of - Inbox Zero.

Zero unactioned, unread, unrespondedto, forinformationonly emails to consider.

Most people have probably given up on the idea. You're cc'd into 99% of things you don't need to be, but you never delete them juuuuuuust incase you one day need to refer back to it - which inevitably never happens.

You're probably treating your mailbox as a very unorganised todo list.

"What was that reference number Jane sent me 3 years ago?" - I'll spend the next hour searching my inbox.

There's an Alternative

(By the way, if you're a Gmail user, this has been available for years as a mailbox feature and is much easier to implement. This is intended for those of us stuck with Outlook 365).

In my time at Zest I implemented this feature in Gmail and went from unorganised to prioritising what was important to me. I even got some of the team to try it too.

I ruled my mailbox, my mailbox didn't rule me. In fact, even as Ops Director, I never checked my emails until 11am at the earliest. I dare you to try it, it's liberating!

The Priority Inbox

1. TO ACTION
2. AWAITING REPLY
3. FOR INFO
4. DONE

Those are the only 4 categories you need.

The 5th one is the 'Delete' button - don't be afraid to use it.

Create the 4 items above as 'Categories' in Outlook (give them a pretty colour).

As your emails come and go, apply one of those categories and your mailbox will start to look something like this...

Next, perform an advanced search on your mailbox (exclude the deleted folder), filter by 'Category' and 'Save Search'.

Do this 4 times, once for each category.

Then, add the saved search to your 'Favourites' list by clicking on 'Add favourite'.

Drown Out The Noise

Now, no matter how hectic your mailbox gets, and how many emails you retain (just incase), by clicking on the category in your Favourites list, you have quick access to ones which need your attention.

But not until after 11am!

You'll thank me later.