The Smarter Way To Check Your Email

The Smarter Way To Check Your Email
A man looks at his email on a Blackberry in Washington on November 23, 2010. Americans will take a break from the office over the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays but most won't stop checking their work emails, according to a survey released on Tuesday. The Harris Interactive survey conducted for Xobni, an email software firm, found that 59 percent of employed American adults will consult work emails over the holidays. Fifty-five percent will check work emails at least once a day and 28 percent will do so multiple times throughout the day, the survey found. AFP PHOTO/Nicholas KAMM (Photo credit should read NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images)
A man looks at his email on a Blackberry in Washington on November 23, 2010. Americans will take a break from the office over the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays but most won't stop checking their work emails, according to a survey released on Tuesday. The Harris Interactive survey conducted for Xobni, an email software firm, found that 59 percent of employed American adults will consult work emails over the holidays. Fifty-five percent will check work emails at least once a day and 28 percent will do so multiple times throughout the day, the survey found. AFP PHOTO/Nicholas KAMM (Photo credit should read NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images)

I wrote recently about the futility of trying to reach inbox zero. Since email expands to fill the available space, the best approach is to plan in important things first--creative work, mentoring, dreaming--and then let email fill in around the edges.

But even if you agree with that philosophy, there are practical considerations. What if most during-the-day communication in your office occurs via email? And what if responding to emails actually is a big part of your job? Are there smart ways to check email in those cases?

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