Get Over Your Email Addiction

I know what it is like, you find yourself checking your email when you should be doing something more productive with your time. When you know you should be doing something more productive. Instead however, your addicted to that email. Always checking it. To over come your addiction requires you to identify the main culprits for why your checking your email so much. Many reasons can motivate why you check email, but here are the five big ones and some solutions:

Reason #1: Checking email is a bad habit

What is the first thing you do when you get to work? Thats right! Check that email first thing. What happens is that your email becomes a time sunk for you that helps derail your main work goals for the day. For example you mentally decided that by 11 am you wanted to have a project done by a specific time. Since you checked that email, you now find yourself solving a completely different problem or you find yourself distracted by company email notices for the day like "cupcakes in the break-room".

The solution: Develop discipline, develop a daily work plan, and set aside time, the same time, every day to check email. In a nut shell plan ahead what you want to get done for the day and by when. Next is to stick to the plan. Adjust if necessary. Then check email only during your time you have designated for email.

Reason #2: Procrastination

Good old procrastinating. Instead of just getting started with the task at hand and doing the work you think "first I will check my email" which will then lead you to reply to this person, then to check the status of that social network. The view a video of a cat burping. Half hour later your still right were you started.

The solution: Set a daily work plan and stick to it. Make it a point to get your work done in the time you think it should take. Remember, do your work first, then play around when you have earned the time.

Reason #3: Your expecting an urgent reply

Now urgent could mean a notification from match dot com that someone messaged you, or urgent could mean a client responded to a previous email. Regardless of the reason, when your anticipating for an email you will often waste time when you should be moving forward and getting things done. So stop refreshing your in-box and get some thing done!

The solution: If your at work, use a service like "Away Find" that will send you a notification that a particular person sent you an email. Another tactic is to leave open your email open while you work on other tasks. Occasionally check in to see if your anticipated email showed up. If not, go back to what you were doing. When the email shows up, close out of your email after responding.

Reason #4: Waiting for the cookie

The randomness of delightful emails from a lover or a friend, a happy customer, or your previous date, make a compelling reason to constantly check your email. You just never know when they pay off will be there which in turn keeps you hooked.

The solution: Replace the emotional high you get from positive emails with something equally positive. Like a 15 minute break room conversation with a work buddy. Or print out positive emails and post them in your cubicle to keep you motivated.

Reason #5: What do I do now?

Great you completed your work for the day. Unfortunately in corporate that does not mean you get to go home early. It instead means you have to continue working on something brand new. However your unsure of what to start and email provides a convenient excuse for work. You decide to clear out your inbox instead of taking on a new project.

The solution: Write down a list of tasks, or keep a running list that you can always refer to. It is impossible to be completely out of work at work. There is always something you could and should be doing.

To finish this off, stop checking emails when you know you should be working. We all have excuses, but you will feel better about yourself by accomplishing goals and getting things done.