How to organise your inbox

tips to organize your inbox 2

Every Monday morning, as soon as I start my computer, I am greeted by the same thing: an overflowing inbox. Hundreds of emails have pilled up during the weekend and I always want to climb back into bed and hide there for the whole day instead of dealing with it. Since this isn’t really an option, I’ve decided to tackle my inbox pretty much on an everyday basis (at least when I am home) and I have implemented a system that really works for me and, hopefully, it might work for you too!

One destination

First things first, I’ve combined all my different email addresses (work, personal & blog) into one single Gmail account. This is so much more easier to see everything at a glance and it means that I always have the email that I am looking for at my finger tips. You can simply do that by importing your custom email address into Gmail and you’ll even be able to send emails using the same address (just follow this useful guide).

Labels & color coding

Then, I created custom labels (& matching colors) for important contacts. No matter if it’s my mum, my bestie or my boss, each and everyone gets a custom color. That means that when I log into my account, their emails are the first that I see. Plus, they’re easier to organize into different folders afterwards.

Unsubscribe

While it’s tempting to be the first to hear about Net à Porter sale or this incredible new article on Fashionista, I tend to keep my newsletter subscriptions to the strict minimum. Opt for weekly or even monthly updates of your favorite websites and create custom alerts for products on pre-loved fashion websites like Stay Clothes. This will keep your inbox clutter free for longer, I promise. And if this task sounds way to big to be tackle, just type ‘unsubscribe’ into your inbox to get all the newsletters that you’re subscribed to on your screen!

Use markers

See those little stars and red flags that you can add to your emails? Well, use them, but make sure to do so wisely! While it’s tempting to mark all the current promotions on Asos as well as upcoming events, be uncompromising about it. I personally like to use the little star for emails that I want to look back into and the little red flags for future projects or things that need immediate attention.

Use widgets

2 of my favorite little widgets for Gmail are Boomerang & Sidekick. The first one lets you schedule emails for later (no more emails sent at 3AM, yay!) while the other keeps you notified whenever your recipient opens up your email. I find these two to be really useful on an everyday basis plus, they’re both free!

Folders are the way to go

I like to keep my inbox as uncluttered as possible, which means that I organise everything into folders. Since my Gmail account gathers all my emails, both personal & professional, I first created folders for these. One is for personal emails, one is for the blog and the last one is dedicated to work. In each of these, I created different sub folders, whether it’s for travelling (personal), upcoming collaborations & press releases (blog) or invoices & projects (work).

Do you have any tips to keep your inbox as organised as possible?

tips to organize your inbox 1

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1 Comment

  1. Tessa Holly Sparkle
    August 11, 2015 / 11:40

    These are great tips, I do some of them already but I had no idea about the widgets, they sound so so helpful!

    http://www.hollysparkle.co.uk

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