Want to do something really simple that will make you instantly more productive in your daily work and less of a slave of email? Tony Schwartz, renowned personal productivity expert, says that instead of checking your email first thing in the morning, you should check it later in the day. That way, you control your agenda, not someone else.
Here’s an excerpt from a recent Harvard Business Review interview he recently gave with David Allen (of GTD, or Getting Things Done fame):
... another ritual I have that aligns with David Allen's work is to always do the most important task of the day first thing in the morning, when I'm most rested and least distracted. Ninety percent of people check their email as soon as they get to work. That turns their agenda over to someone else. They do it because it's easy - you can feel more effective in a shorter time by answering emails. It also feels good to be wanted, and emails affirm that people want you. Human beings are designed to do two fundamental things: avoid pain and move toward pleasure. One instinct kept us alive; the other aloowed us to reproduce. Those are still the impulses that drive us. You need a higher part of the brain to be able to step back and say, "There's a better choice to be made here." ...
It is true that by checking emails at certain times of the day increases productivity.
As an email expert I also recommend that all audible and visual alerts are turned off too – our brains are wired to respond to new stimuli and the email envelope or chime which informs us we have new mail can prove irresistible – and very damaging to our workflow and concentration!
@MarcPowell
Great to have a true expert weighing on this important topic. Thanks for your input Marc.
I must say, the UK is definitely fertile ground for the email overload business, seems like there is lots of competition in this area there.