Using Inbox Zero for Emails & Messaging

Every weekend, I carve out time for a weekly review and one of the first steps is to get to inbox zero. I use this for both emails, messaging, and tasks, but let’s dive into how this works for communication.

Inbox Zero was conceptualized by Merlin Mann in the mid 2000s as a way to handle email.

In short, there are only 5 actions you can do:

  1. Delete
  2. Delegate
  3. Reply
  4. Defer
  5. Do

Doing this with email tends to be easier, as there are more ways to organize and recall information via search or looking at labels and folders.

But, this may seem a bit more difficult to do with messaging apps like Slack, Teams, Google Chat, etc.

Just replace “Delete” with “Read” and the rest of the actions are still applicable.

  1. Delete / Archive / Read: you don’t need to see this anymore
  2. Delegate: include the appropriate person in a reply, forward, or @ mention
  3. Reply: self explanatory :)
  4. Defer: capture this for later, which might be using an email label or folder, bookmarking in your messaging app, or capturing a task
  5. Do: if it takes less than 2 or 5 minutes, just do it

I have been using this technique since 2011 in a variety of work environments, and it has been a helpful tool to stay organized and accountable to others.

I aim to be at Inbox Zero for email and messaging by the end of each day, but do not obsess over getting to exactly zero; I pick up any stragglers the next day as part of my morning planning.

I encourage you to check out ​Mann’s Google Tech Talk about Inbox Zero​, which is an entertaining way learn about the concept. ​Todoist’s blog​ has a pragmatic discussion about whether it’s worth trying Inbox Zero.

TLDR: Inbox Zero is a helpful framework to manage emails and chats. Try it out and don’t obsess over “exactly zero”.