How to handle information overload

Philipp Lenssen recently had a good post on tips on information

people. It got me

thinking about the various tips and tricks I’ve imbibed in the recent

past and which work reasonably well for me. So I tried to collate them

into one place:

Email

Always bring the inbox down to zero regularly. ‘Regularly’ isdefined by you.
Never allow anything to be in your inbox > 2-3 days
- If you’re not going to reply in that time frame, you never will.So simply archive it or reply with a one-liner saying you can’tlook into it now.
If you don’t have anything to add, don’t reply.
Make sure you are clear on what is the action you are expectingfrom the recipient.
Reply in bullet points. Because everybodyskims.
Once you’re done with the email (replying, taking action orreading), archive it.
If it is not actionable, archive it. Don’t let it remain in yourinbox.
Use keyboard shortcuts.
Mailing lists go into folders. I simulate them in Gmail using “Applylabel, Skip Inbox” in the filters. The reason is that mails notdirectly addressed to me are not urgent, so I can process themwhenever I have the inclination. Whatever is in my inbox is whatdeserves immediate attention.
Minimize the number of times you need to check email. The minimumthat is required for you to stop worrying about it. The beauty ofemail is that you can reply at your pace. Make use of that feature.If you end up constantly checking email, you’re better off resortingto phone calls or instantmessenger.
[new tip] Before you send the next email, go through thechecklist.