how to stop treating your email like your to-do list

Your inbox is not your to-do list... and if it is, it shouldn't be.

Email is an unfiltered feed.

A notification machine.

A stream of other people’s wants, needs, and FYIs.

Here's my (actually doable) inbox strategy that helps me manage my day without letting other people's priorities take over my calendar, mood, or mental energy 👇

1. Start Here - Turn off Your Email Notifications

   
   

   Seriously—this one change will shift everything.

   
   

   If your phone or desktop is pinging you every time someone sends an email, you stay stuck in reactive mode, jumping from one person’s priority to the next.

   
   

   (I'm holding your hand when I say this...)

   You don’t need to know about every message the second it hits your inbox.

2. Set Times to Check Email

   
   

   I don’t check my inbox all day long. I go through it a few times a day—usually morning, mid-day, and late afternoon. This keeps email from becoming a constant distraction.

   
   

3. Don't Touch An Email More Than Once

   
   

   Every time I open an email, I take one of these actions:

   • Reply and file it away

   • Delete if it’s irrelevant

   • Create a task in my project management tool if it requires work

   • Snooze or flag it only if I truly can’t take action yet ... but I'll be taking action soon

     
     

That’s it. I don’t let things sit there in limbo.

4. End the Week Empty

   
   

   Most days, my inbox has no more than 3–5 emails sitting in it.

   
   

   By Friday evening? It’s at literal zero. Every time. (Yes, really.)

   
   

   That doesn’t mean every task is done. It means the work has been sorted—handed off to Slack reminders, ClickUp, or my desktop digital Stickie Notes (or sometimes all 3).

   
   

This is my system—but there are countless ways to reach inbox zero. From built-in Outlook tools to AI helpers, the key is finding what works for you.

And if all this still feels like too much for you right now - DO THIS ONE THING:

• Unsubscribe ruthlessly from emails you don’t need/want. You can ALWAYS resubscribe... and get an incentive from the company to do it, most likely.

Your Inbox is Input. Don't let it have more power than that.

Now go hit archive on that clutter—and get back to the work that actually matters.