082: Email Overload? Do This First

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Did you know that there is a top-secret conspiracy that is fighting to take your time, energy, and attention from the stuff you care about? It works ruthlessly at all hours of the day and night to steal from you.

Do you know what it is?

Your email inbox. Dun, dun, dun!

OK, maybe I'm being a little dramatic. I mean, it's not really a conspiracy, but doesn't it feel that way sometimes? You think you know how your day is gonna go and then you look at your email and you're like...what the...???

Or maybe you are looking at your email first thing in the morning while you're still in bed and it starts stressing you out–and you start replying to stuff–before your feet even hit the floor. Don’t get me wrong. I don't see anything necessarily wrong with opening your email in bed. If it works for you, go for it.

Email is just another form of interruption, and interruptions are neutral. They are not good or bad. They are, by definition, things that pause the continuous progress of an activity or process.

Some interruptions are more intrusive (like a phone call from an elderly parent that doesn't normally call you in the middle of the day) and others can be kept at bay and engaged with when you choose to engage with them. Email, for most people, falls into this category.

In this episode, I’m talking about how to take back control of your time, attention, and energy. Before you let your email take over your day, start your day with intention.

After you’ve listened don’t forget to head on over to @TheProductivityShift on Instagram or Facebook to share your experiment or ideas with others.

**This podcast is lovingly created by yours truly, Elise Enriquez, and produced by Rachael Sanya.