Email — Hoarders vs. Deleters

See today’s Wall Street Journal, Part D, Personal Journal:

There are two kinds of people getting email: The Hoarders and The Deleters!

Hoarders keep every email, judging their self-worth by the number of their retained emails.
Deleters get rid of most of their emails, wanting a very clean electronic environment.

Is there anything in between Oscar and Felix of "The Odd Couple?" I’m not sure and the writer, Jeffrey Zaslo of the "Moving On" column doesn’t say.

Here are some suggestions, however, to manage your in-box:

• Send fewer emails since each one sent begets a reply.

• Make your emails brief, not long treatises.

• Be General MacArthur with his motto of handling a piece of paper only once: Answer the email immediately, delete it or file it.

• Create folders/filters to identify really important messages.

Categorized in: Technology