I ran across this story. How This Company Is Trying To Eradicate Email. It got me thinking about zeroing out our inboxes and reducing time spent on email.

Could you imagine, clearing out your inbox daily like the mailbox in your driveway!?! Earning some special Zero Badge.

We can all agree with this statement from the article….

… 10 percent of the 200 messages … received on an average day were useful, and that 18 percent were spam. Managers spent between five and 20 hours a week reading and writing emails.

In saying all this, I wanted to share how I have implemented Merlin Mann’s Inbox Zero over the last year by following these simple rules:

1. Delete it! Sometimes this is the correct step… Let it go, that is what that link on the internet said.
2. Delegate/Forward it if it's not your area, get it to the right person.
3. Do it Two Minute Rule. If you can do it quickly. Do it. Quick WIN!
4. Date/Time it Set up a time to do it.
   1. To accomplish this I use a combination of Smart Search Folders, Categories, and Follow-ups.
   2. If someone wants, I will be glad to show how I do this… or this link provides some detail : How I Get to Inbox Zero in Outlook
5. Finally, archive the finished product. Not the email trail.

By doing this, I have limited the time I use to monitor email and be more organized within the work day.