Say Goodbye To Email Overwhelm: Top Hacks For Saving Time And Reducing Stress

For most people, me included, email is the core action of their job. Whether sending newsletters, following up on coffee chats, or answering customer service questions, email is king. It also allows for the opportunity to work from virtually anywhere. However, there are times where I have found emailing to be very overwhelming. There was a time where it completely consumed my day. I had to make a change. I implemented these four email hacks to overcome inbox anxiety.

In my line of work my time is tight and my schedule is unpredictable. This hack has allowed me to be productive during non-business hours and work smarter rather than harder. I just type up the emails I need to send and schedule them to send at a later time. 

As elusive and mysterious as AI can be, this hack is clutch. Chat GPT is a great tool to create email templates. I simply input a prompt such as, “Craft an email template to send to a cold contact.” In return, I receive the start of a great networking email. While the responses usually need a small amount of tweaking, the heavy lifting has been done for me. 

Away messages are for much more than just PTO. I set automatic replies for everything from letting my contacts know I will only be responding during certain time frames, that I may be slow to reply due to increased inbox volume, or to provide alternative contact information for customer servicing. The options are limitless and cut back on contacts reaching out multiple times. 

This hack is crucial to CYA. I simply go to the settings section of my email provider and locate the unsend email feature. From there I increase the time to help me when I have spaced out or accidentally “Replied All” on an email. 

Here is what I have realized, even with new communication platforms such as Slack or Hangouts, email is not going anywhere anytime soon, and that is a good thing. Email allows us to travel, vibe at coffee shops, or care for our family without missing a beat at work. While emails can get out of control, they do not have to. We have tech and hacks available to make emailing a breeze.