Phew! I just went through a moderate case of the attack of the inbox.

I recently noticed that going through my emails has become a bit of a chore. Usually I would just sort through, read the more important ones and delete the rest. However I decided this time could be used better so I took the longer route of opening and unsubscribing from each email I didn’t want rather than just pressing ‘delete’.

Here are some things I discovered from this little exercise about managing my time and energy better:

1) You are always changing

There are little ways you have changed over the year that you may not even notice. Some of the email lists I was on were relevant to me about 2 years ago but are now a nice distraction. Pay attention to the energy you bring to the work you do and your relationships and you may notice little changes of direction and a call to readjust your boundaries and resources. Perhaps you want to focus on a certain aspect of your work and life and spend less on another?

2) Weed out time wasters once and for all

Some of these emails were outright useless to me, like a shoe company that kept emailing me offers after I ordered a pair of shoes from them in 2011.Maybe for you it might look like some things that need to get organized but just keep piling up.

Why not just deal with these from the root cause once and for all? I had put this away for too long.

3) Quantity versus quality

I felt a little hesitant unsubscribing from some email lists that I did enjoy to an extent, however freeing up this mental space allows me to take the time to enjoy my favourite emails. This is the hard part, those things you like but don’t love. Or that are kind of good for you actually but don’t serve you as much long term.

4) I am sure you can tell this is not just about emails

“Unsubscribing” from little things that don’t really matter can help strengthen your focus in the coming year. It may take some work upfront, but removing these time and energy wasters can free you up to think clearly and also bring your best to your more narrowed commitments. You might also be surprised to find that you have more time than you thought to use where it matters the most.Time is our most precious commodity, and it has a way of flying away doesn’t it?

What will you unsubscribe from as the year comes to an end?

Ps: If you’d like to learn more about managing your time better, you will enjoy this talk by Darren Hardy

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