7 Reasons to Keep the Inbox Empty – Part 3

#3: Things are not lost or forgotten

Today’s blog post is the third in a series of 7 Reasons to Keep the Inbox Empty.

It’s easy to forget important actions and tasks when they’re buried amongst so many other messages in your inbox. When you do finally get around to addressing them, it is usually under time pressure with a deadline looming (or already past).

At best, important e-mails will require reminders; at worst, they will be left un-actioned (thereby negating any benefit of using e-mail for that action item).

Rely on your system instead of your memory

By contrast, when you use the 4D method to 'make a decision' and take action on new e-mail, it is then moved out of the in-box to a more appropriate place, as follows;

• deleted (if not needed for future reference or as a business record)

• delegated (when next action needs to be done by someone else)

• filed (in one of your e-mail folders)

• converted into the calendar for later action

• moved to a waitlist folder (with a reminder as you’re now waiting for someone or something else)

Once one of these actions is taken, each e-mail and its contents now sit in the appropriate place until the appropriate time you need to address it again. As a result, you can safely forget about them – they will return to you (at the appropriate time) instead of you having to remember and then chase them up to find them again!

This is a great way to rely upon your system, rather than your memory, to keep track of all the tasks and activities you have to keep up. Why not start use the 4D approach today and see what a difference it makes?