It takes me until mid-day to clear my inbox. I type fast, act decisively, and maintain inbox zero. My problem is that I worry about being clear and polite.
These are bad impulses. I respond to things I shouldn’t. I choose words too carefully. I even use emoticons to avoid seeming snarky. (My hunch is that you have an equally unhealthy relationship with email.)
To lead a deliberate life, we need to overcome these instincts. Let’s admit it: few of us have such an abundance of time that we should be word-smithing these messages.
Were it productive work, fine, but our collectively-held email habit is getting in the way, and begs to be addressed. So, I’m calling it quits today, proposing a more sane course of action, and sharing it with you.
If you’re tired of email sucking the life out of your day, I ask you to place the following text in your email signature. It will help explain why your responses have become more brief, and perhaps encourage others follow suit:
Join the Single Sentence Email Project: http://gu.nu/w3H
Then, concentrate on learning a new habit: brevity. Respond to emails with as few words as possible. Aim for a sentence, but if just a word will do, use it.* It will take practice, and some might dislike it. I argue that this is a fair trade for getting more time to work (and live) productively.
* Mom, I’ll still send you emails that are longer than a sentence.
(Although it's my mom, who mostly gets the single sentence emails.)
As for those I don't know, I can only spare so much time. My feeling is that a short, thoughtful response in these instances is still much better than no response at all.
It is also necessary to understand that emails are part of the SMS environment too. So, the nature of mails will change. Thankfully, I have not come across many people who carry over their messaging grammar over to mails.