So lovely readers of this blog, I have a couple of questions for you this fine Tuesday morning.How many emails do you have in your inbox right now?
I'm asking you because right now I have 2,992 and I have a sneaking suspicion that that is a few too many.Apart from the junk emails, most of the emails that come in are for Daylesford Organics,or are comments or emails from my blog. The business ones I try to answer as they come in, or I send them off to Bren. The blog ones are a different story. I have high expectations that I will be able to visit or reply to everyone who leaves a comment and so I leave their email until I have done so and then I delete it.
Do you do that?
Unfortunately, life gets in the way and I hardly ever get through the comments before I post another blog, and then I start again even though I am already behind.
Recently my IT guy, (farmer Bren), set me up two more mail boxes on my computer, one called archive and one called follow up. These were meant to help me sort through the emails quicker. Then I was meant to delete anything that didn't have a question in it. Great theory.
This morning I searched through my emails for half an hour looking for an application form to a produce day next year, only to find it eventually in my follow up folder.
Apparently for me, the more folders I have, the more places I have to dump emails and forget about them.
Last night as I visited some of the comments from yesterday's blog, I deleted all the other emails the same commenter had sent previously. That seemed to reduce the number substantially. But I forgot to check if they'd asked a question and now I'll never know.
If I only had the time to deal with every email as it came in. Do you?
So how many do you have? And how do you keep them at a reasonable number? And what in fact is a reasonable number?
Any help or advice would be hugely appreciated.
This Green House dress was made from a sheet given to me by a friend. It has op shopped bias binding, trim, lace and doily and has the words Everything but the thread sewn straight onto the dress. It is a size 4/5. Sorry for the lack of ironing, I was dying to get a picture before the rain. It is raining right now as I speak but the dress is safe and dry in my shop.I hope you have a great day today and thanks so much for helping. X
Oh, Kate, you poor darling. The mere thought of having so many unread e-mails just makes me shudder. You have about 6 x the followers I have so any tips I have would probably be useless. But here goes - I follow the Four Ds when I see an e-mail for the first time:
ReplyDelete1.Delete it;
2.Do it;
3.Delegate it; or
4.Defer it
You might also find this link helpful http://www.microsoft.com/atwork/productivity/email.aspx
I hope this helps! J x
That's so funny, I just went through this very thing last week! I had 1803 emails in my "Lola" inbox, I have the same good intentions and swear that I will at least visit those with blogs and leave a comment if I can't reply to the comment directly. I get business emails, personal emails etc in this box too. I just went through and deleted all of what I thought could be tossed. I still have 270 messages in my inbox, hmmm.
ReplyDeleteThen there is the other email account I have that goes back to 1996. Yikes. I don't have any helpful hints sadly but, I look forward to hearing what others say!
The dress is stunning, I love it madly.
Oh, Kate...I almost feel bad leaving you a comment if it means another email in your inbox...right now I have 263 messages, 9 of which are unread. They're mostly blog comments and junk mail, or notices from my alma mater and the like.
ReplyDeleteAnd the house dress is absolutely adorable.
How funny. I have several e-mail addesses, all getting slightly out of hand because I don't delete stuff. Only this morning I tackled them and deleted almost everything. (Its taken ages.) I feel less cluttered for doing it. I need to reply as I read and not think I'll go back to them because I just get too far behind.
ReplyDeleteRemember - it is meant to be fun, it is not a job. If you answer 1 in 20 then that is ok. Sometimes people say on the top of their comments, if you have a question email me direct then you can just enjoy the comments and delete them if you get to them. I can't reply to all my comments all the time (not in a big headed gees I get so many kind of way, just in the I just don't as I have too much to fit into the day) and now I have learnt to JUST LET IT GO. Allocate some time to go through your follow up each day, but make sure you put only the stuff you have to in there. Someone said to me once, don't worry if you haven't replied to a comment as the person that left it is probably worrying that they haven't replied to theirs to worry.
ReplyDeletex
As some with 2887 emails in my inbox, I feel I am the last person to give advice ( hey it was 3026 so i'm feeling a little proud).
ReplyDeleteI think you and I are quite similiar about this, although I don't think get as many emails or comments as you.
I found folders too are and an excuse to dump, and well to be honest, I'm just lazy and a little sentimental. I feel every time someone writes something nice, I want to keep it, because I thnk I may go and reread it again. I have one folder called "nice comments" which in theory I put all my nice comments I want to keep in, that is in theory, and I hardly ever go and visit it so it's a little pointless.
I agree with Cindy, 1 out of 20 is fine, it's meant to be fun and enjoyable, and if too many shoulds come into it, I don't think that's good. I don't answer every one if thats a help.
xo
Ahh emails... my biggest problem is when I read an email but then don't reply STRAIGHT AWAY because it requires some thought (ie more than one sentence!)... then it works it's way down my Inbox and is forgotten...
ReplyDeleteBut a tip if you're searching for a specific email... If you use Outlook or a similar program there will be an 'All Mail Items' folder up above all your other folders. Then just use the search box up the top to enter a few keywords to find the email. Saves searching manually through each individual folder. :)
My hotmail account has 4274 emails in the inbox plus several folders of stuff with other emails. But I'm happy enough with this because I can use the search function and find what I'm after.
ReplyDeleteWork is a different story - I have 444 emails in my inbox and I tried at one stage to deal with things and then delete them but our paperless filing system here is so slow and hopeless that I end up keeping stuff so I have it for future reference!
Good luck with it (and please delete this email immediately - I don't want to be further responsible for your inbox clutter)!
It can be really hard to keep up.
ReplyDeleteMy system works for me .... but might not suit you. Not sure. Here 'tis:
- I have loads of folders for emails of all different topics. (eg. blog, kids, banking, house stuff, funny things I want to keep, etc)
- One I've read an email ... if it has no follow up required .... it gets moved straight to the appropriate folder.
- (I almost never delete emails so I can always easily find an email on a particular topic if I need to)
- Anything requiring follow up stays in the inbox until I've dealt with it.
- I do the same with my sent mail. It all gets filed away in case I need to see what I've said at some stage in the future.
- Every now and then, my inbox gets out of control so I go through it and reply to the most recent blog posts only. Then everything gets filed whether I've responded or not.
Clearing out my inbox is sometimes as therapeutic as cleaning out a room in my house. I can breathe a little easier.
If I had nearly 3000 emails in my inbox, I'd start by organising by who the email is from and start filing (or deleting) anything but the latest one.
Hope that helps.
It's important to remember that people who leave comments don't expect a response every time. Do you expect a response every time you post a comment?
Andi x
PS DO NOT RESPOND TO THIS COMMENT!!!
I cleaned my email out about a month ago, but am back up to about 800 again. Folders don't work for me so I just keep everything in my inbox and search to find things when I need them. I have given up hope of replying to blog comments but do try to visit their blogs and comment there.
ReplyDeleteI love the dress and if I had a child here it would fit, would have bought it already.
I choose the sweep option but I never leave them 'unread'. I only get around 30-50 per day though! x
ReplyDelete389 is my number and I can't stand it. I am going to do something about it because I find it quite alarming. I cannot imagine your number! Thanks though because I don't want to reach your number or even near it-I'm tackling mine tomorrow!
ReplyDelete4987. *whistles*
ReplyDeleteI'm suggesting you use Gmial, it takes a little getting used to but you can see at a glance if you replied and if you go back and forth 5 times with the same email it appears as one entry with the number (5) shown beside it like that Instead as 5 separate emails cluttering up your space. My Best friend and I have emails in my box with 20 or so back and forths in them ... but they just appear as one. And all of your do not reply blog comments go in under the same post with the number on it too. As I said it takes some adjusting but free's up that place where clutter resides in your brain too.
ReplyDelete864 in my inbox right now. I try to respond to each comment or visit the blogs of the commmentors. Some days I reply to all the recent comments and archive them, other times I end up with 864 emails waiting for me. :)
ReplyDeleteThe dress is super sweet. Still raining around these parts too.
Uugghhhhh!!! I shudder to think how long I would have to be at the computer to get through that many.
ReplyDeleteIt's nice to be popular, but is it still fun.
Oh Kate I think I would freak out having that many emails in my inbox. I usually take one or two mornings when the kids are at school to go through my emails. Some days I manage to reply to all of them, but some dont get a reply at all as they dont usually need one. Then the ones I have replied to I delete and clear out my email box as my comments I like are on my blog anyway so I can always pop in there to read them if I feel like I need to. I do hope you find a way to manage your email situation and it doesnt stress you out too much, perhaps you need a secretary! Love the dress too, how gorgeous. I wish the rain would visit us as it has been horrible and windy the last 2 days making me sneeze and feel crappy. Anyway, hope your having a lovely day besides the rain which is good for your vegies.
ReplyDeleteLove that dress and the sheet it came from. We used to call the clothes we wore at home our house dresses but they never had houses on them. I archive a few very special emails in folders with specific names (eg, details, which is codes and passwords; madeit; family; blog people, etc). The rest gets read and only replied to if I have the energy. If I am not going to reply I delete it. At the moment I only have 1 email in my inbox and it is there just so the box doesn't look totally empty. Please don't reply and delete this fast. lol Cherrie
ReplyDeleteHappy Blogtoberfest! I am on a mission to comment and follow all the blogs in Blogtoberfest! Maybe you could comment and follow me as well! Cheers!
ReplyDelete1,949.
ReplyDeleteIt must be genetic!
At least I've replied to all of the 1,949 that I need to reply to.
I've resolved to never go above 2,000.
xxxxx
If I have not replied to a blog comment after a week I delete it and if I reply to a comment, I then delete previous comments from the same sender to try to stay on top of things.
ReplyDeleteI don't reply to every comment, I don't have time :( I am good at archiving into folders if it is something I want to keep. I try to keep my main mail page to one page so I can see things at a glance.
ah. yes. I recently did a huge cull. my partner gave me a great tip which is:
ReplyDeletewhen culling order your inbox by 'from' so you cull everything from 'adam' all at once. For some reason it is so much quicker and easier. not sure if this would help you!
good luck
I've got 1790 but obviously some of those are too old to worry about now!!
ReplyDeleteI am not so good with my emails. I read them all but don't always get time to respond. I definitely delete anything straight away that I won't be needing again. I only move it out of my inbox when it is dealt with so then move them to folders or delete them. I also have the same with blog comments. I want to reply to them or stop back on their blog and I keep them email. After a week or so if I still haven't replied I just delete it unless it was a particularly crucial thing (then hopefully it would have been done in less than a week!). it certainly isn't something I can keep on top of!! All the best, Lou.
wow, 23 comments already, you would be struggling just to read them let alone check out their blogs, return the favour and personally answer any questions. Now that you have a shop any important questions would come through that. Perhaps you should have a different email address for the shop and for the blog.
ReplyDeletebloggers leave comments to be upbuilding and supportive and dont generally expect a reply. Customers of your shop would definitely expect a reply, and asap.
yep seperate email adresses, thats what I'll do when I am big and famous like you :-)
KATE!! that is too much to be expected to do- no one expects you to reply to every comment that is insane. I agree with what was said earlier- if people have a question they can email you otherwise perhaps you could change your comment message to:
ReplyDeleteThankyou so much for coming to visit my blog. I appreciate you visiting, I really really really do. Unfortunately, I cannot reply to every comment so if you have a question please email me. Thanks again, Kate. xx
I LOVE the dress so much that is the cutest fabric!
The dress is adorable! Love the ricrac trim on the house.
ReplyDeleteSuggestions for reducing email inbox. When it all gets a little overwhelming the first thing i do is sort by subject so I can delete any regular emails which I know are part of the nice to know but don't need a response.
Secondly, if its something that is important and needs attention later I "flag" so I'm less likely to delete it during a moment of purging.
Lastly, if I had nearly 3000 unread I'd probably sort by date and wipe out anything that's just chatter that is more than 2 weeks old... I'm guessing after that people would expect you are too busy to respond for that moment and aren't expecting anything back. Also if it requires your attention there's a good chance they will send you a follow up email.
I usually check three times a day - morning, arvo, and night. I don't reply to all comments, but I do try to always answer any questions.
ReplyDeleteI also have a lot more spare time as I live alone!
I have 2993, I did a big cull the other day and deleted nearly 500 sigh. I wish that I didn't know now.
ReplyDeleteI hope that you keep telling us how many you have that is grand.
I'm thinking some of us just can't be helped! Is your house a constant mess too? I have my daughter and my hubby giving me a hard time about my emails as well. I only have 29 items in my box and I'm sure to be given a talking about it soon. I'm just like you, I have plans to do something about it but it just doesn't happen. I feel so guity about the ones in my month ago box! Good luck with a new plan.
ReplyDeleteLove the dress and the fabric reminds me of my childhood.
ReplyDeleteCecilie
2459 - so I ain't got any valuable advice to give you. A QUESTION though - how to you stream comments on your blog to an email account. I'm still using a tiny netbook which doesn't have email set up so I receive my emails through my IP webmail? Which means I can't email anyone who leaves comments for me.
ReplyDeleteLovely dress!
Jak x
Hi just popped over from the Meet me at Mikes links. Love your blog and although I dont get as many emails as you I do find I run out of time answering all my blog comments. Still I think we all realise that life gets in the way sometimes and you just have to muddle along as best you can. Hope you get your mail sorted.
ReplyDeleteHi Kate,
ReplyDeleteI love reading your posts and seeing your wonderful pictures. When I comment I don't expect a personal comment back directly.
It will eat into your time and sap all the fun out of blogging if you put that sort of pressure on yourself.
I didn't even realise you can get your comments emailed to you. Perhaps you should have a seperate email for your blog. I hate to think of important farm / family related emails getting lost in your inbox.
Someone suggested that you write something along the lines of "if you have a specific question email me directly" which i think would be a good idea. Also if you get a few of the same questions perhaps you could write a blog post as a reply. If a few people ask then I am sure there are others thinking of asking!!
aeonie x
1146 for me and I thought that I was terrible but it seems I am not the only one. I flag ones that need a reply and I'm pretty good at that, I do try to delete as I go but a lot just get left in the inbox and I haven't the guts to just hit the 'delete all' button just in case I accidently delete a knitting or crochet pattern that I have downloaded. Keep saying I must sit down and check to make sure I don't lose something important but it doesn't seem to happen :-)
ReplyDeleteMine is very low, I read and delete or mark it as unread again if it needs attention that I can't give it straight away and my wonderful son has set up lots of folders for the business and personal use to archive once read or dealt with, Its not foolproof but it really helps!
ReplyDeleteThis is bonkers!!!! I try to keep mine below 100 - yes 100 as I feel overloaded otherwise. I barely get a fraction of your comments, but I don't get them sent to my e-mail, I just read them on the post.
ReplyDeleteI don't think anyone expects a response from every comment they leave, who has that sort of time on their hands?
Give yourself a break, hit the delete button! Now!
I'm way behind even reading blogs - the party looks divine, oh to be 7 again. x
here is one more for your in box....
ReplyDelete-for starters I would set up two differet accounts for Business (Farm) and Blog.
-then suggestion to reply to 1-20 is good.
-mabe set up a page with frequently askes questions, I bet you get lots of similar and recurring questions.
-lastly, reply and delete.
good luck and love your workd
Ummm I never delete lol, I have thousands and thousands..I scroll through to find comments, which I am sure I miss. And try to make sure I don't pass over something important. But I guess I should work on the email declutter too. And since Sophie has been super clingy lately I haven't had much typing time to reply so now I am starting to feel guilty about that lol..Hope you get it under control somehow.
ReplyDeleteLove the dress it is just too sweet..I can see this one being worn with a little pigtailed girl :)
ha, I am an email hoarder, and my email program currently has about 25,000 emails in it! But only 25 unread which means they need action.
ReplyDeleteI do however have to let some stuff "go" as well, comments I intend to reply to and then the time passes.
However, that program covers our freelance business, several webmaster accounts and Lime Lane.
Sadly, there is another email program for our bigpond account which has about 10,000 emails in it ~ basically subscription c**p I will never read.
Moral to the story, don't take advice from me!
firstly...ohhh my goodness to Kellie's amount!! whoahhh.
ReplyDeletemy 1694 seems a bit amateurish compared.
I hope you get yourself sorted.
I haven't been coping aswell anymore with emails & don't reply back to people. I just can't do it, it gets a little bit too much to be sitting here replying to comments so I try to pop by & say hello on their blogs.
I don't think people expect replies..well unless it's a question. as much as I love receiving an email from you, I really don't want you to stress about writing back lovely girl.
i hope you are staying dry today, it's one of those wet crazy days isn't it.
♥
Oh Kate that dress is SOoooo CUTE!!!
ReplyDeleteIn my Inbox there's currently 79 emails. Only about a dozen of them will remain as it's stuff I need to answer or remember!
Every day I delete the ones I answer, delete the rubbish, or send to a folder the ones I cherish.
My sent items folder sometimes overlfows so periodically I send them to the folders I've created ... Mmmm there's a Foxs Lane folder amongst that lot too ;)
For me emails are like journal entries - I can check back see where I was, who I was talking to, or what I was on about on that day!
It's a shocking job but you'll be happy when the filing is done! xo.
dunno if anyone else said this. but gmail now has a priority inbox system which is super helpful. http://mail.google.com/mail/help/priority-inbox.html. you have to train it for a bit, but then it really works, and makes it all more manageable. xo--a
ReplyDeletedunno if anyone else said this. but gmail now has a priority inbox system which is super helpful. http://mail.google.com/mail/help/priority-inbox.html. you have to train it for a bit, but then it really works, and makes it all more manageable. xo--a
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