Managing Your E-mail: Thinking Outside the Inbox

By Christina Cavanagh

Manage information overload to save time and money

E-mail is one of the most useful and efficient business applications ever developed. However, many people today dread the chore of sorting through an inbox crammed with messages that don't concern them and spam they don't want. In fact, research shows that North American office workers waste up to twenty hours every week sorting and managing their e-mail messages, causing more productivity loss than gain. Finally, there's a straightforward guide dedicated to helping workers and organizations tame the e-mail monster and take back their time.

Managing Your E-mail is a simple, accessible reference for workers and organizations that want to get the most out of this ubiquitous and sometimes overwhelming method of communication. With new strategies for dealing with e-mail inefficiencies and practical tips on getting and staying organized, it will free up hours of time each week for what's really important. It examines the categories and patterns of e-mail misuse and presents practical, research-based explanations, solutions, and quick tips on topics such as:
* Best practices for responding to e-mail
* When to choose more traditional communication methods over e-mail
* How to structure an e-mail for high-impact
* How to craft more readable and understandable messages
* Legal pitfalls to avoid
* Common e-mail myths
* How to reduce e-mail volume in your organization

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0471457388
• ISBN13: 9780471457381
• Release Date: September 2003
• Publisher: Wiley
• Length: 208 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Increased Business Productivity

I enjoyed this book because it helped me increase my business productivity by redefining my e-mail habits.Christina Cavanagh outlines the dangers of e-mail, including viruses and lawsuits. She also shows the productivity decreases caused by spam, e-mail ping-pong, and inappropriate use of e-mail as a communication medium. More than that, she gives practical suggestions on how to increase your productivity using this essential business tool.

Highly Recommended!

This excellent short guide to the promise and peril of e-mail reveals some surprising and little-noted facts. Far from creating a paperless office, for example, e-mail has multiplied the paper businesses consume. Along with making communication more convenient, immediate and spontaneous, e-mail has raised false expectations and increased the probability of hard feelings and misunderstandings. If those were the only problems this book spotlights, it would be worthwhile to take it seriously. But author Christina A. Cavanagh additionally offers some frightening examples about the invisible cost of e-mail, measured in terms of employee time and legal risk. The book has a tendency to repetitiveness and prolixity, and many of the recommendations for managing e-mail are familiar. However, We particularly recommends her strong examples, which may convince managers to implement the best practices they may already understand but often ignore.

A Powerful and Practical Guide For All!

A must read for all email users! This book is full of helpful hints to use this powerful communication tool more effectively and efficiently. The lessons learned and tips offered for every day use are equally relevant in the workplace and at home. This is a well researched and written book that quantifies and explains unproductive practices and how to overcome the many traps and temptations we face every day. This book will resonate with managers that have known intuitively that this area needs attention but haven't known how to deal with it.

Essential tool to manage e-mail overload

This book is a must have tool for companies and individuals who want to conquer the dark side of e-mail by getting control of their e-mail time and managing information overload. We all complain about the amount of time we spend managing our e-mail but we all agree that email is an essential tool for business. Ms. Cavanagh presents some practical advise and protocols for us to follow that will reduce information overload, manage our time and bring back some old fashioned civility to our business correspondence. Companies need e-mail policies to protect their assets and employees. Today, more than ever, greater scrutiny is being placed on business practises from regulators and investors. No company can afford the risks associated with sloppy email practises. Ms. Cavanagh presents real life examples of the horrific costs companies have paid for e-mails getting into the wrong hands which should scare any risk manager to advocate for stricter email policies in their business. This easy to read book gives you the practical tools to begin to take charge of your e-mail in-basket, manage your time and get back your life.