After being on a 6-day vacation, I’ve returned to find my inbox pretty full.  I’m a bit overwhelmed at the thought of wading through all those messages.  Sound familiar?

We all get overwhelmed from time to time.  I thought I’d share with you how I handle it when I have way too much to do.  My strategy is to go through my inbox and prioritize things.

1. I’ll make a list of anything that needs my immediate attention, and prioritize that list – client requests come first, then prospects, etc.

2. I’ll put anything that just needs to be read (like newsletters) into a “read later” folder.  That helps clear up my space.

3. I’ll also look for anything that I can safely delete right now. (love doing that!)

4. About all I should have left are things I need to read more closely or think about so I can decide what to do with them.  Hopefully there will only be a couple of those.

Spending a half hour getting my inbox organized will strip away my overwhelm and help me get back into my work groove.

Hope this is helpful to you!