Productivity – Email management
Productivity – Email management
Here is the transcript of the first podcast episode with Oliver, so you can read through it again instead of listening 🙂 Enjoy!
Oliver
My name is Oliver. And I’m a concert from based in Munich in Germany, originally and more from the west, from Cologne. But yeah, so Germany and Austria. And Switzerland is my playground, to say like, if you could say like this, okay, so where to start to be honest, I, maybe I started my studies. So I was, let’s say infected for like time management and self-management from the start of my university. So everybody who’s studying and I think many of the students, many students will listen to it, I started to, for example, I wanted to have a really good degree, I want to have really good degree, my university, but on the same side, I just wanted to go to every party and to see my friends. So this was actually if I’m looking backwards, this was the start of my, let’s say, I was fascinating in self-management, how to how to organize, and how to manage different things at the same time. And yeah, so I started to work like almost everybody, my, my university, I started to work as portfolio manager in a bio methane company. So it’s renewable energy. Business, which obviously in Germany is really big. And I started to, I was leading a team at that time, which was completely from, they came from the universities, they had fire motivations of Beijing, but I saw that the thing that they had to focus on to better themselves is to better organize themselves. So this is why I was just started to not only working on myself in getting better organized, I also showed others for example, my teammates, how to organize themselves. And now I just skip the middle part. Right now, after five and a half years of working in this company and starting to work for university is to give speeches and courses for students, I came to the field of being a concept. So I have three main topics, if you could say it to how to help people get more productive and better organized, which is obviously the basic is a good self management, entitlement time management system. So this is, for example, the most basic thing I recommend everybody to really work on. The second part is digital tools, right? Everybody loves digital tools. We are laughed with Asana, Trello, and stuff like this, which is obviously really helpful, but you need to integrate it with the things with your structure, your time management, productivity app, or Santa for example, will not get you more productive. You first have to focus on the structure and then you can use the digital tools. Yes, and the last part I’m working on this high performance. So I shall our teach people to get a really good peak performance. How can you, for example, use your energy management use your body and different techniques to be more productive if you have to. And this three parts, I combined to like a system that I created, which is digital digital self management. And now at the moment I’m offering mentoring to, especially to CEOs and to company builders to how, where I just showed them how to be more productive and organized, and how to organize the company itself, like first processes, digital tools they use. If you want to, we can go in bit more detail about that. But now, let’s say I will, I will keep it like this. So if you ask me, What is digital console about? I’m helping people to get better organized to use the tools they have to use to being productive if they have to, without for example, yes, without losing your hobbies, or free time or relationships. Yeah. This is like a short introduction to my
Christine
great, great, great, amazing, and there’s a lot in there that I didn’t know actually interesting. Yes, you’re right, we of course, have a lot of students that are listening to that. But also, there’s a lot of people that are already in a job and might be a bit overwhelmed with all the work. But no matter which stage you are, if you’re still studying, or if you are working in a company, you are completely right, that is productivity and managing yourself and managing all the time to make sure you get everything in and to make the most out of the time as well when you study can be very difficult. And this is why I’m so excited to talk about this topic in general, that it helps everyone, no matter if you’re if you’re working or study because you need to learn that and in this day and age where we’re overwhelmed with all kinds of things that we have to do and or feel the pressure to do and yeah, sections we have in our really impacting our productivity and getting things done. So this is very, very important. And I really like that you said, Okay, there’s all these amazing tools out there. But if you don’t integrate them in what you’re doing anyway, then it probably won’t work as well. And we get frustrated with them. And we don’t use them in because maybe we will not be used to our own way of working. And then this is a great tool. And we think, Oh, well, I’m going to check this out. But then you have to implement it, you have to think about it. And really you have to look into do you actually need every single tool? And if you identify that you need something for a specific part, which one should you choose? Because also these days, we have so many tools out there with all kinds of different pricing all kinds of different features, and so on. Anyway, thank you for that introduction. That’s great. Let’s go into the topic, email management there.
Oliver
I really want to stress out to this point, people normal. Normally, if they just want to be more productive themselves, they are searching for different tool. So you have this typical shiny new object syndrome, you have a new app is coming out you so you want to switch. And people don’t understand that normally, if they have problems with being productive, and they change to a different tool, they obviously will keep the same problems. Because tool is only a tool, right? It will. Like let’s say it scales, your impact, your positive impact and your negative impact. So one thing that I really want to because we will not we go in detail on different tools in the next four, four episodes, but this one I really want to give your audience if you’re talking about tools and stuff like this, it’s really important to know what kind of tools you have and how to separate them on the one hand and how to combine them in the other hand to a great system. So yes, this may be to add on.
Christine
Yes, very good because the tool is not going to do the work for you. In most cases. There’s obviously automation tools that you can use that does some of the work for you. But unfortunately, I think fortunately, we still have to do some stuff our perfect okay, so shall we start with email management, in this case, what we want to focus on in this episode, and I’m just going to hand over to you really where you want to start maybe Just shortly from my side, I do try to work with inbox zero, it’s never zero. However, I only have, for example, in my inbox, what still needs to be dealt with. Or if it’s something like, Ah, you have a voucher for this, and I know I will use that voucher for I don’t know, back in the days it was a business card orders or something like that, which is not relevant anymore. But so I have some emails in my inbox, but really not a lot in my in. However, I know what’s in my inbox needs to be dealt with what’s not, and everything else is either deleted, or put into subfolders. Even also the Send Email. So everything is really organized, let’s say in subfolders, but I’m sure there’s a lot a lot more things that we can talk about. I’m also using tools, we were talking about tools to use emails as reminders or have templates that I can use that are already saved in my emails, if I have a specific follow up after networking, for example, the main structure is pretty much always the same. And I just have to add some stuff, things like that. So I try to optimize and create templates for things that I always use. But I can’t wait to to learn a bit more about the things that you’re using and that you’re recommending. One tool I’m using is also boomerang in Gmail, but I’m not sure we talked about it. So I’m gonna, I’m gonna let you start with that. But that’s just for you to know how I usually work. I use email, it’s really as one of my main tools instead of WhatsApp or telegram or any other tool that’s on my phone, really.
Oliver
Thank you really much for the introduction in this kind of topic, and I’m really, really glad. Please do me a favor Stop me if I’m talking too much about this topic, because I think I could talk for hours. And yeah, the first thing that we both have in common, everybody’s talking about email is death, that nobody needs email, their slack, this, I don’t know, teams. But you and me, we love emails, right? So first, let me start with the emails in general. Right? So if you like it or not, if you’re working in a fancy startup, or in a old company, emails or communication channel number one. So everybody have has to deal with email communication, right? The second thing is that if you’re, if you’re searching, for example, two studies, email management is the productivity killer number two after multitasking. So obviously, you have some kind of tool, but you have to deal with it carefully that it’s will not become a distraction. And what am I talking about concretely? For example, the good old email ping pong, I don’t know if you have it. But in my last job, I think I got 300 emails per day, internal and external. So you think hearts great day, let’s start. So you’re opening your inbox, right? You’re starting to work from the bottom mama, mama, mama, Mom, you have good energy 50 6070 emails, then you just going for like a little, maybe you get to toilet or you grab yourself a coffee, you come back 30 more emails.
Christine
I used to have that all the time in my previous and it can be super frustrating. And you think like, Oh, my God, I’m never going to catch up. Yeah. And the worst is if people mix up the topics in one email as well. So I don’t mind different questions. But you’re talking, for example, about one thing, and then the person thinks, oh, by the way, I wanted to ask you about this, which is sending the entire email thread of the other one. And you’re like, No, no, no, no, no. Can we separate this out, please?
Oliver
Yeah, and it’s really hard. If you are organized and your counterpart isn’t, it’s, it’s really hard to meet the middle, right. Okay, but now that we have emailed ping pong, that’s one of the main problems. The second problem for me in the last or let’s say all days, was the time I spent to organize the mating into folders. So I had a sub folder for every business partner. So I think I had almost 300 folders and a really complex system. And it took me almost one hour per day to sort everything. So it was like really not efficient at all. Yeah, and if you’re dealing with so much emails and so much sub folders for me what’s really complicated to separate the important from the unimportant. And sometimes I, I didn’t react in a proper time to important email or stuff like this. So obviously, back in the days, my email management, when you look at the big amount of maize I got was not not good, let’s say like this. So what can we do with it? And here, I can only say I give you some hints how I would use it. Obviously, there’s not a right or wrong, it depends on your specific system. So you have a good system. I know, I have a system with different aspects. But if it’s working for you, or if mine’s working for me, it’s good, right? The only thing is, you have to manage your emails.
Christine
Yes, yeah, I want to stress this as well, because it’s really important. Sometimes people think like, oh, this person is super organized. And I need to do it exactly the same way. Just because it works for me, doesn’t mean it works for someone else. And the same with you. So thank you for saying that. Yes, perfect.
Oliver
Yeah, this is like the thing, if you’re just looking at this kind of gurus that are good organized, or in other fields, you have to or my, what I would advise you is to look not on the things they do look on the principles they use. For example, you mentioned inbox zero, right, Inbox Zero is a principle. And you can, you can use it in completely different kinds of folders or stuff like this. But inbox zero means that you have one inbox where stuff is coming in. And the most important part is to go through this inbox. At the end of the day, it’s empty. This is inbox zero. And I following the same principle like you, because if you have one inbox, so one place where all the emails are going in, and you’re sorting through it, then you can say, you watch every single email. And if you now you have a system how to delete it, answer it or sorted, then you can say 100% Sure, I saw all my emails, right. So this is why, for example, I love the inbox zero as well. Just like this, do you want to add something to Inbox Zero?
Christine
No, I think that’s right. Because Inbox Zero is the principal, it does mean that you don’t have to have zero emails in your inbox. And if you do for how long he said, Because I mean, if you think I guess I have zero emails in my inbox, you wait five minutes, you probably have another one. Yeah.
Oliver
Yeah. Okay, so now, a few really good hacks for you. So the first one is, like I mentioned before, email people, how can you overcome email ping pong. So I have a really easy solution for you a second folder, which you could I in the internet, I saw some almost the same system, where it was called action today. Right. So the process will be your once in a day, for example, in the in the morning, you are looking through all your emails, and you have to decide what to do with email, only touch an email once really important principle, which obviously, you can use for whatsapp or other messages as well. So if you touch an email, you have to do something with it, you can delete it, you can forward it to somebody else, if you want to delegate it, you can archive it, or you can answer it. Right. Very good. So then in my system, you would go through all your emails, and you would look at them. Is it important? Is it unimportant, deleted? Is it some information that maybe you can use later archive it? Is it something that somebody else needs forward? And if you have to answer it, just you have a quick decision? Do I just have to write yes or no or stuff like this? So beyond my time to answer it is beyond two minutes, I will do it directly and archive the main but if it takes me a bit longer, I have to think about the email. It’s an important one, I would put it in the folder action today. So if you follow this process, you could for example, in 10 to 15 minutes, check all your inbox and empty it. So then you have an idea. Okay, I have 10 to 15 emails in mind action today folder, and now the magic happens. So then you don’t writing emails from the inbox, you’re writing emails from action today. So you have almost a clear list, you start at the top, and working yourself through all the image to the bottom. And at the end, you’re in your action today folder is empty, and you will not see the responses in the inbox. So I would obviously, I would suggest that you shut down all the notifications, also the little number where you could see how many emails are in the inbox, that they’re just focusing? Yes, yes. Same for me. And then we work yourself through the action today folder. So then you say write your answer every, yes, I just want to stress this up. If you follow this system, you can easily select between important and unimportant emails, you can easily answer all emails during the next 20 to 24 hours, and you will never miss an email, right? And you could stay in your time block. For example, if you say if you’re checking your email, you have 15 minutes to answer and you think why it will probably take me two hours, you could block two hour block in the evening, for example, just to to answer and then you’re done. You will not get distracted by any emails in the inbox. This is my first tip. Yes, what do you say, but
Christine
I really like it. The one thing I would add to the how I would do it in addition, it’s really nice way is that I started dealing with email straightaway if it takes less than two minutes to do. So immediately replying in not first put in a folder have to deal with as of today, but if I can reply to it immediately, quickly, and it takes less than two minutes to reply, then I do that. So it’s completely, basically dealt with.
Oliver
Now. Yeah. 100% agree. Like if you have to answer to an email, it will take you less than two minutes directly reply. If it takes longer than two minutes. And you have to think about it. Put it in another folder.
Christine
Yeah, cool. Okay, cool. So action today folder. What else do we do we have? What other tips do you want to give? What other hacks?
Oliver
Yeah, one hack, and I think you will not like it. Because I know in this kind of area, you have this different approach. But I normally I have what I was working on this. I had so many sub folders in my system, so many folders to sort the emails in and now I only have one archive folder. Only one. And why is that? For first of all, I had subfolders for business partners. Normally the business partners, they have the same email address, right. So if you using the search, you will find them easy. And Google Gmail, for example, Outlook. The search function is getting better, better, better. So we what I would advise you all it tip that I could give you really take yourself time and watching maybe one hour tutorials in how to use the search function, and then reduce the folders to archive. First step. And the second step. If you focus on a really good formulated subject line where everything that you would search for is inside, then your search function will work way better. So my two tips in this kindness, use one folder, the archive folder to search all the image, then you don’t have to sort it into subfolders. And secondly, use really good subject lines. And if you, for example, would write me an email, whether we really wake subject line or something which is completely uncomplete. I will reply and correct the subject line. So if you do this, you will find all your emails easily with a search function.
Christine
Because that wouldn’t be a question because you can subject lines, but the people who reply don’t or the people contact you first might not have that good subject line now.
Like you said, I’m not sure if it convinces me too much because I work with subfolders. And this has also to do, obviously for habit because I used to do that. And why did I do that? Back in the day Even though I obviously could search for something, but sometimes if you have, for example, back in the days I had, I don’t know, let’s say you have 600 Different people sending you emails. You do not remember the person’s name, or maybe the email address exactly, because they have maybe a strange email address. But sometimes it’s a Gmail. And then you think like, oh, this person on this company, or this person, send me something, but I don’t remember what the name was. And then I guess you can fall back to the subject line. Yes. In addition to that, and this is probably we talked about this in another episode, maybe have a good CRM. So his system where you save your contact details, if you’re working in a company or something, what they probably have, where you can search by the company, and then if this person sent me that email, and you can find it, but this might be maybe something that people might have difficulties I can imagine to find the writer, we will forget who actually sent the email.
Oliver
Yeah, sure, it can be. I was really afraid when I when I changed my system. So I did an email bank, I really put all the emails I had into in the folders. And in my inbox, like 1500 emails into a folder where it was written, I will delete this folder at x y z. So I had it in one folder. So I had the time for one month to maybe check the emails, maybe searching if I’m need something else. But to be honest, when it comes to email management, if it’s normally right, it will not go well for one or 2% of the cases. But normally, if you delete an important email, the other person will come back to you. So in this case, if you if you want to change the system, you should not be this afraid, because the people that are working with you, they will normally if they’re in higher positions, they have really good follow up systems. Yeah. So if they don’t reply, during like, I don’t know, one week, they will just catch up on you and say, hey, if I get my answer, they have a good system.
Christine
That is true. That is the same with phone calls. For example, when me to call, you don’t have to call back immediately. Because I always think, well, I don’t know this number. If it was an important call, the person will call back anyway. So I guess that same is for the email.
Oliver
What I really like, for example, when I’m writing you, Christine, I have so much faith in you, and I trust you. So I don’t I don’t you know, I know you have a good system. So I write you an email. And I think okay, it’s done. I don’t have to remind you, I don’t have to follow up on you. I just trust you and your system and everything is fine. My energy will stay. Yes. For being productive and not for have to think for you. Yes, yes. Okay, so I think I don’t know. Do we have time for one last tip? Yes, please. Okay, so one thing that I really want to stress out, it’s like a principle as well. And that is valid for all the digital communication. Please treat emails, like normal mates. If you so the main reason why there are emails is because they want to deliver information. And the same is for example for, I don’t know, birthday cards or stuff like this, somebody wants to give an information to you. And when the information reaches you, the email doesn’t have any value if you don’t need it for later reasons, right. So an email management system it’s not made for storing documents or different information or stuff like this, I would advise you to use email for receiving or sending the information. But when it comes to for example, saving the information from this email for later or the document or stuff like this use other tools. So then you just have you’re getting the email you get the the information, and it’s fine, you don’t need anything more. And another thing and it normally you can compare it with every are different cases when it comes to digital tools. Normally, when I see people working, I just looking how they work with emails I seeing, Oh, they’re checking the inbox, there’s a new email. So they don’t have time for replying. So they’re checking it, reading it, maybe clicking to unmark it or market as unread, and then they’re going back to the work. And then I just say to them, Hey, just imagine you would go to your postbox, because you receive in mail. What do you go there, open the paper, weeding it, putting it back in the paper on putting it back in inside the post box. So one of these principles that will save you a lot of time, but it’s to be honest, even for me, sometimes it’s hard to follow his touch emails only once every time you open an email on WhatsApp, or Text message or slack. Do something with it. Right reply directly, save it forward, deleted, but don’t getting into the habit of reading an email. And then the next time you have to read it again. So this, I think it’s a really important thing to know about Max.
Christine
Yes. Oh, very good. Thank you. Maybe the only two things or tools that I’m using if someone is using Gmail, and I guess a lot of people use Gmail is to maybe make use of the template function they have, like I said, if you really have always similar things to send, then you can have that there. And maybe use tools like boomerang for Gmail that helps you to schedule emails or to boomerang emails back to you so that you don’t forget about something. So I use this function. For example, if I talk to someone, and they tell me Oh, yeah, but I’m going on holiday, can you tell contact me in two weeks time again, I basically replied to that email with the function of boomerang saying boomerang this email back into my inbox in two weeks time. And so it comes on as a new email. And I don’t have to remember or put a task there anywhere. So I’m using that Yes. function. And also unsubscribing from unnecessary pieces and other Yes. And if you’re using Gmail, what’s really great, because sometimes you don’t know how many subscriptions you actually have. There’s a great tool that’s called unroll.me. Yes, you can just plug that in, and it tells you, you have 355 subscriptions. And then you can just unsubscribe then, but these are like just three tools that I’m using that I wanted to, to mention, in addition to how to manage actually the inbox that you outline.
Oliver
I could add one of the things because I’m really fair, I’m a fan of these templates, like you. But the problem with these kinds of templates for, for example, only Gmail, is that I, for example, in my case, I’m really active on LinkedIn. Yeah. Right. So and then I’m on there as well. Yeah. So there are different tools, for example, phrase Express, or text expander that I use. So I have like different kinds of categories, email templates, or LinkedIn templates. And with short combinations on your keyboard, they would directly put everything inside your email or your your LinkedIn box. And the good thing about for example, I use Text Expander. I get an email every month, in, they just know how fast I can type because they are checking the keyboard, and they know how many letters I saved. So then I just get a report this month, you save 10 hours of riding time. And this is like so amazing to see lovely good. Yes. And for example, like we talked before it, I made the made a big workshop and how to reach your goals in 90 days, like year goals in 90 days. So I had a big amount of outreach. And it’s saved me a ton of time to send the same message seconds the same email to different people.
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