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WHEN AND HOW: External Communication (Email)

When should you use External Communication (Email) and how do you use it with best practices.

WHEN:

Outside communication with Prospects, Clients, Vendors, etc.

HOW:

Goal:

Get to Inbox 0 every day:

  • 0 Unread
  • 0 Read
  • No more than 3 emails checks in a day.

Our Preferred Tool:

gmail

Principles:

  • Archive instead of Delete

    There's really no reason to delete email. Deleted email isn't searchable and gets cleared out.

  • Minimal Folders - use Search

    Folders are hard to keep track of and search is faster.

  • Reduce the Volume of Email

    Unsubscribe, turn off notifications, etc.

  • Not Every Email is Important

    In fact, most are not. Find ways (filters, etc.) to make important emails stand out.

  • No Notifications

    Desktop or audio notifications kills focus and productivity.

  • Use Integrations

    Create tasks in Asana directly from Gmail. Log and track emails in Hubspot directly from Gmail.

Use Key Features of Google Mail to Save You Time:

  • @ People on Your Team

    To add them into the "To" field.

  • Auto Advance

  • Conversation View

  • Unlimited Email Addresses with '+'

    andrew+newsletters@gmail.com

  • Optimal Sidebar Setup

    Labels only show what you need and only if unread.

  • Keyboard Shortcuts

    'e' to archive, 'g'+'i' to get back to the Inbox, CMD+enter to send an email, etc.

  • Snooze

    Messages needed in the future or messages to follow up on.

  • Filters

    Deprioritize unimportant emails.

  • Default: "Reply to All"

  • Send + Archive

Frequently Asked Questions

There are a lot of messages in my Inbox. What's the big deal?

You're wasting valuable time by leaving email in the Inbox and it's completely unnecessary if you use proper habits.

It's also a visual distraction. Even without you knowing it, when your eye sees a long list of (even 'Read') email, it can't help but wonder if you've handled the follow up items required.

We can teach you how to get and maintain Inbox 0 and spend less time overall in the Inbox.

In order to get to Inbox 0, I am going to need to spend a lot of time in email and I already do. Won't this take even more time?

No. You are in email all day currently because you've never been taught how to process it properly. We will show you how to get in, process the Inbox down to 0, and get out.

It's on you not to ping pong back into the email box twenty more times before lunc because of FOMO (Fear of Missing Out.)

FOMO is costing you valuable time which you could be spending on more important tasks than responding to other people's To-Do list items for you (aka. email.)

I get 200 emails per day. Can you help me?

Yes. We've worked with people getting 500 emails per day. The first step is to declare email bankruptcy. The second step is to clear what's in there now - you will never get to everything. Third, we deploy tactics to reduce the # of emails you are getting today by 20-40%. Finally, we teach you how to process the rest quickly and efficiently. If you are disciplined and make this into a daily habit, you will tame your email beast.

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