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Leading Learning Leadership Development
 
photo of woman typing on computer
Leading Learning Bulletin
February 2007
Bulletin #10



E-mail Control: Time Management

E-Overload: E-mail overload is not just a problem for school leaders.  The E-mail glut has gained footing in businesses, government offices and in our personal in-boxes.  The topic of E-mail Overload has been formally researched.  Special studies have been made and position papers, articles and books have been written on the subject.  These documents were prepared in an effort to analyze and problem-solve a way out of the E-maze and take back that much needed commodity - time.  
E-mail was designed as a solution to better conduct business and communication, but somehow it has become the problem causing the loss of time and productivity in the workplace.  In 1997 a book on office humor published the joke, “When I get to work I check my E-mail, my faxes, my voicemail and the messages on my desk, and then it’s time to go home.”  Two years later the joke was modified to read, “When I get to work I check my E-mail…”  No doubt, wry humor can relieve the stress we feel when our inbox is full and there is no time left in the day.  The question is how do we take control of the E-mail tool and make it work of us?    

E-Solutions: Many solutions have been proposed to gain control of E-mail.  Courses and seminars offer strategic processes and software packages to try.  Handheld devices have been developed for users to have easier access to the in-boxes.  No mater what method you choose to take charge of your E-mail, the most important factor is to begin.  In 1535 Sir Thomas Moore said, “The first step is the hardest.”  The fact that he was being led to the beheading block to be executed at the time should not put us off from taking action.  It is essential to responsibly manage your E-mail.  To get started consider these first steps:

 

  • Check E-mail at defined times of the day.
  • Use the subject line for the whole message.
  • Keep E-mails short – ensure your main point is in the first sentence.
  • Clearly discuss only one issue per message.
  • Reply only to the sender. Do not duplicate. Copy as few people as possible.
  • Edit forwarded E-mail.
  • Use your preview pane to scan E-mail to determine if you really need to open it, if not click delete.
  • Deal with a message once - read it, act on it, delete it, respond to it, or file it.
  • File future actions to a folder or task list in Outlook. Avoid using the inbox to store these messages.
  • Post Frequently Asked Questions responses to a web site and refer senders to this site.

Managing your time involves being in control of our own behavior.  It requires each of us to change the way we presently do business and experiment with new methods to maximum our use of time.  Setting E-mail priorities is one way to reclaim that most valuable resource – time.

  • Gundry, J. (2002). Tuna - the e-mail problem that’s eating you! Retrieved Dec 17, 2006 from http://www.knowab.co.uk/wbwload.html.
  • Larsson, L. (2006). Increase your productivity: managing emailglut. Retrieved Dec 17, 2006 from http://courses.washington.edu/~hs590a/modules/35/emailglut.ppt.
  • McMillan, N.E. (2000). Time management. Retrieved Dec 17, 2006 from http://www.accd.edu.
  • Montagne, R. (2005). Overcoming e-mail overload at work. Retrieved Dec 17, 2006 from http://www.npr.org.
  • Robbins, S. (2004). Tips for mastering e-mail overload. Retrieved Dec 17, 2006 from http://hbswk.hbs.edu.
  • Schulman, M. (2005). E-mania: ethical approaches to e-mail overload. Retrieved Dec 17, 2006 from http://www.scu.edu.
  • Sherwood, K.D. (2002). Tips for overcoming email overload. Retrieved Dec 17, 2006, from http://www.overcomeemailoverload.com.
 
 
Bulletin #:   Leading Learning   |   1   |   2   |    3   |   4   |   5   |   6   |   7   |   8   |   9   |   10   |   11  
 

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Last Updated: July 18, 2007
 
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Highlights
Bulletin #10:  E-mail Control: Time Management
Bulletin #11: Struggling With CBH (Cart Before Horse) What’s in a Grade?
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