At the moment, I have 2,086 items in my inbox!  This is crazy, absurd and unproductive to say the least.

Email is a tool, just like a hammer.  It is a tool to use when needed.  It is designed to get more done in less time and to help me be more productive.   2,086 items in my inbox is pretty good evidence, however, that I am not using this tool very well at all.  The backlog of items creates a swamp of "maybe to-dos" and items to check that cut down on my productivity as soon as I turn on my email each morning or check it during the day.

As usual, I received an answer to my problem from one my CyberStars®, top agents who use technology as the backbone of their businesses.  We have a Weekly Topic on our private list serve, and this week's topic as "Getting Organized."  CyberStar® Brad Korn of Blue Spring, MO (http://www.bradkorn.com) submitted a great tip, and his post gives me hope there is a solution to my problem.  He picked up the idea from the book, "Getting Things Done," by David Allen, and I'll pass along part of what he shared.

"There is an incredible method for processing all that email that piles up, but before you do that get your email box to zero!  That's right: zero!  Go through each email and ask yourself: can I take care of this in 2 minutes or less?  If so, take care of it and delete it.  Everything else should get filed into a folder other than your inbox.  If you create an @ sign in front of the folder your folders will go to the top (as they do in Outlook) so that you can easily view them without scrolling down through all the folders.  Use labels that allow you to segment different tasks: @actions, @errands, @projects, @waiting for, @phone, @home, @office, etc.  File accordingly by dragging the email into the appropriate folder. 

"There are some folders you will check every day, and you get to do the things you feel like doing.  If you have been on the phone with a nasty client and don't want to talk to anyone the rest of the day, avoid your @phone folder.  Do something in your @computer folder instead.  You get the idea and, believe me, it helps!"

Taking action, I began this as my first task this morning.....it works!  I feel better already without as much clutter, and I love the idea of being able to go to just the right folder for just the right task.  Thanks, Brad!

Hope you don't have 2,086 emails in your Inbox.  If so, however, try Brad's tip and let me know how it works! 

It's a beautiful day here on the lake in Reston...hope it's a great day wherever you are, too!

(For more tips on using technology to build your business, pleased check out my new eBook, "Digital Essentials for Today's Agent," here!