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#ProdChat – 2/13/13 – All About Email

#ProdChat – 2/13/13 – All About Email

Natalie Houston (@nmhouston) was so gracious to host #ProdChat last evening! Thanks to her for making the #productivity chat so great!

  1. In case you missed last week’s chat, here’s the transcript: 

    (pardon the typo…it says 2/16/2013 but should be 2/6/13!)
  2. And, here starts this week’s transcript…Enjoy!
  3. Welcome to #ProdChat, the weekly #productivity chat! Topic: “All About Email”
  4. Looking forward to tonight’s #prodchat on email. Thanks to @nmhouston for hosting!
  5. Ditto! RT @TaraRodden: Looking forward to tonights #prodchat on email. Thanks to @nmhouston for hosting! #prodchat
  6. Let’s start things off with intro’s. Tell us a little bit about you. And, do you use to a specific #productivity system? #prodchat
  7. We’re excited to be part of our first #prodchat! RT @nmhouston: Welcome to #ProdChat, the weekly #productivity chat! Topic: “All About…
  8. Hi. Michelle here. I’m a productivity and tech geek. Hmmm… maybe a wanna be geek. Anyway, I use GTD and @OmniFocus for my system #prodchat
  9. My intro: I’m Natalie, a productivity coach and an academic. I help people gain focus & move forward on their goals. #prodchat
  10. Hi all! I’m a PhD candidate desperately trying to finish my dissertation and starting to use #GTD to help with…everything. #prodchat
  11. Hi, everyone! Could take forever to say hi individually… but Big Welcome to @sendgine! #prodchat
  12. Welcome @sendgine I’m happy to know you are here fore your first #prodchat
  13. I’m Isabel .. I’m a college student obssesed with productivity, GTD, Omnifocus, and helping other people learn these systems. #prodchat
  14. @nmhouston Thanks for hosting! We’d heard this was a cool chat to be part of! #prodchat
  15. As we start, remember to add #prodchat to each tweet so you’ll show up in the conversation feed! Answer A1, A2, A3, etc. for readability.
  16. Q1: LET’S START WITH THE POSITIVE. HOW DOES EMAIL HELP YOU BE PRODUCTIVE? #prodchat
  17. Welcome @jodiacampbell You won’t ever regret learning about the GTD system.. trust me 🙂 #prodchat
  18. Me too! “@jodiacampbell: Hi all! I’m a PhD candidate desperately trying to finish my dissertation. #prodchat
  19. RT @nmhouston: Q1: LET’S START WITH THE POSITIVE. HOW DOES EMAIL HELP YOU BE PRODUCTIVE? #prodchat
  20. Thanks for starting us off, @nmhouston . I work in higher ed. No current system but I’ve been using Workflowy most recently. #prodchat
  21. @IsaPinaud Thank you so much! It’s very cool you are into productivity–that is definitely important as a college student! 🙂 #prodchat
  22. A1 I love that email allows me (and the recipients) to be able to address questions at a time that is convenient for each party #prodchat
  23. By the way, we’re Sendgine. We help people with #socialproductivity, but tonight we’re just here to learn from everyone! 🙂 #prodchat
  24. A1: Oh, well, I couldn’t possibly think about a world without email. It’s my ubiquitous, asynchronous communication! #prodchat
  25. A1 Obviously the time you save by getting next to instant responses about doubts and requests you are making. #prodchat
  26. love this view of email! and totally agree RT @michgunn: A1 It’s like time traveling! 🙂 #prodchat
  27. A1 I Email helps me to be reliable, connect with people, maintain relationships. It’s one of my most valuable #productivity tools #prodchat
  28. .@rsidneysmith some of us are old enough to remember working without email 🙂 it’s much better to have it, believe me! #prodchat
  29. A1 Or maybe that was the subway… either way… it’s a great way to have a timely conversation when the phone won’t work #prodchat
  30. A1) If used correctly, e-mail is a great form of fast communication. It can just become too much sometimes. #prodchat
  31. Heyllo @rsidneysmith Glad to see you here.. Although I’m sure you never miss this haha 🙂 (Unless your stapler needs staples) #prodchat
  32. A1 I don’t like to be interrupted — or to interrupt someone else. So email helps avoid that. #prodchat
  33. RT @rsidneysmith A1: I couldn’t possibly think about a world without email. It’s my ubiquitous, asynchronous communication! #prodchat
  34. Yeah! Can you imagine?! MT @rsidneysmith: A1: I couldnt possibly think about a world without email… #prodchat
  35. @nmhouston Ha! I remember when I used email that couldn’t go anywhere but internally in my office. LOL. #prodchat
  36. A1 The thing about e-mail is that it speeds up any processes that could have taken weeks before #prodchat
  37. MT @TaraRodden: A1 Email helps me to be reliable, connect with people, maintain relationships. #prodchat
  38. @michgunn I’m afraid to imagine. It might cause my head to implode. 😉 #prodchat
  39. Completely understand @nmhouston RT A1 I don’t like to be interrupted — or to interrupt someone else. So email helps avoid that. #prodchat
  40. YES! RT @nmhouston: A1 I dont like to be interrupted — or to interrupt someone else. So email helps avoid that. #prodchat
  41. @rsidneysmith Wow! And now e-mail goes everywhere you do! Ha Ha! 🙂 #prodchat
  42. Ha!! RT @rsidneysmith: @michgunn Im afraid to imagine. It might cause my head to implode. 😉 #prodchat
    a href=”http://twitter.com” target=”_blank”>

    Wed, Feb 13 2013 17:11:44

  43. A1 Allow me to manage information on a time that it is convenient and when it is convenient #prodchat
  44. A2 There is definitely way too much e-mail but, most importantly, e-mail isn’t always the most effective way to get things done. #prodchat
  45. @sendgine So true! Literally and figuratively. Great to have you in the #productivity conversation! #prodchat
  46. A1 Email helps me feel like I don’t have to remember everything since important conversations are documented and searchable! #prodchat
  47. So true! Not enough hours in the day! RT “@TaraRodden: A2: Volume, volume, and volume. #prodchat
  48. Email is the quickest way to discuss issues with me. Long texts don’t do it for me. Email allows me to discuss in greater detail #prodchat
  49. A2: For me, teaching others how to manage email effectively and efficiently! But, I think that’s a rarer problem than most. #prodchat
  50. A2 Agree with @sendgine. Sometimes I use email when I should just pick up the phone. It’s easy to be a bit disconnected that way #prodchat
  51. Completely true @sendgine RT A2 E-mail isn’t always the most effective way to get things done. #prodchat
  52. Q2 When I’m busy, non urgent tasks get buried…and by the time I recover, they’re urgent #prodchat
  53. @profkrg @jodiacampbell Same! Jennifer here, PhD candidate always interested in being more productive #prodchat
  54. @rsidneysmith Thanks! We’re excited to be hear–this a very relevant Twitter chat! Especially with all the recent press on e-mail. #prodchat
  55. A2 the possible volume and incomplete answers or vague requests #prodchat
  56. good point from MT @jenn_wlkr: with email important conversations are documented and searchable! #prodchat
  57. +1 “@michgunn: YES! RT @nmhouston: A1 I dont like to be interrupted — or to interrupt someone else. So email helps avoid that. #prodchat
  58. @jenn_wlkr Yes, I look the historical record of conversations. I can go back to emails from years ago and be sentimental. 😀 #prodchat
  59. Interesting take! MT @jenn_wlkr: A1 Email helps me not have to remember everything since conversations are documented & searchable #prodchat
  60. MT @michgunn: Agree with @sendgine. Sometimes I use email when I should just pick up the phone. Easy to be a bit disconnected #prodchat
  61. Seems incredible. It’s not that bad after all “@michgunn: All such great thoughts on email! #prodchat
  62. My biggest email challenge is that everyone doesn’t check theirs more often. #prodchat
  63. A2 Challenge? Convinving myself to process e-mails at specific times a day instead of every 5 minutes #prodchat
  64. 😀 RT @apinaud: Seems incredible. Its not that bad after all “@michgunn: All such great thoughts on email! #prodchat#prodchat
  65. @michgunn Thanks! We agree with you! Sometimes in-person conversations or meetings are best–or even online video chats. #prodchat
  66. Yes! Exactly! RT @IsaPinaud: A2 Challenge? Convinving myself to process e-mails at specific times a day instead of every 5 minutes #prodchat
  67. MT @rsidneysmith: For me, teaching others how to manage email effectively and efficiently! I think that’s a rarer problem. #prodchat
  68. A2: Responding too quickly to messages, better to wait sometimes and see if someone else will jump in first #prodchat
  69. A2 a big challenge on many teams is when people have different email expectations — how soon replies are expected etc. #prodchat
  70. A2: Forcing myself to respond in a timely manner to anything that deserves more than a couple of words. #prodchat
  71. @rsidneysmith Good for you! Tough job sometimes, for sure! Are you a consultant? #prodchat
  72. I’ve heard it said that if an email takes longer than 5 min to compose, there should be a conversation instead. #prodchat
  73. Tough one, but worth the change! MT @IsaPinaud: Convincing myself to process email at specific times instead of every 5 min #prodchat
  74. @jjmccullen Great to have you on the chat, Jim! @nmhouston is hosting for us this evening! #prodchat
  75. A2: @nmhouston a bigger issue is when they don’t respond at all or just overlook your message
    #prodchat
  76. My other email challenge is learning to organize it better. I like the new iOS VIP mailbox – it has helped! #prodchat
  77. @profkrg add to the email send from mobile phone. Then people it is ok with only two words. Regardless if you send it from PC #prodchat
  78. I have this problem too…RT @IsaPinaud Convincing myself to process e-mails at specific times a day instead of every 5 minutes #prodchat
  79. @TaraRodden Sure! This article just ran in the @nytimes over the weekend. Thought it was really intriguing.  http://ow.ly/hHlkw prprodchat
  80. OH! Yes! “@jjmccullen: A2: Responding too quickly to messages, better to wait sometimes & see if someone else will jump in first” #prodchat
  81. @nmhouston Just went through this. Waited reply for a week. Asked the person today and he said “I don’t check my email” WHAT? #prodchat
  82. A2 Sometimes, I just freeze from making the decision of what to do with the email with all the choices I have. #Prodchat
  83. RT @jjmccullen: A2: Responding too quickly to messages, better to wait sometimes and see if someone else will jump in first #prodchat
  84. Thanks @rsidneysmith, just checking out the tweetchat concept, pretty cool #prodchat
  85. +1 RT @TaraRodden: I’ve heard it said that if an email takes longer than 5 min to compose, there should be a conversation instead. #prodchat
  86. A2 Oh, and dealing with students who don’t check their email. I just don’t understand! #prodchat
  87.  http://five.sentenc.es es is a policy that all email responses regardless of recipient or subject will be five sentences or less.prodchatat
  88. Agreed! RT @jjmccullen: A2: @nmhouston a bigger issue is when they don’t respond at all or just overlook your message
    #prodchat
  89. A2 another challenge (ok, pet peeve): vague email subject lines. #prodchat
  90. RT @TaraRodden: I’ve heard it said that if an email takes longer than 5 min to compose, there should be a conversation instead. #prodchat
  91. RT @nmhouston: A2 another challenge (ok, pet peeve): vague email subject lines. #prodchat
  92. A2b I find it hard to schedule time to process, based on expectations of how quickly a response is needed. I need to get over it. #Prodchat
  93. @rsidneysmith, agreed on short emails, I can’t stand when some one sends me an email that doesn’t fit in the window but should
    #prodchat
  94. SO true!! Or no e-mail subject line. RT “@nmhouston: A2 another challenge (ok, pet peeve): vague email subject lines. #prodchat
  95. Q3: WHAT WORKS FOR YOU? SHARE YOUR BEST EMAIL TIP OR STRATEGY! #prodchat
  96. @jodiacampbell Just mentioned this. I’m a student and so many of them don’t check their e-mail. #prodchat
  97. @jjmccullen Agreed! (and guilty of doing the offending practice!) LOL #prodchat
  98. DITTO!! Did I say, DITTO?! RT @nmhouston: A2 another challenge (ok, pet peeve): vague email subject lines. #prodchat
  99. RT @nmhouston: Q3: WHAT WORKS FOR YOU? SHARE YOUR BEST EMAIL TIP OR STRATEGY! #prodchat
  100. Yes!! me too. RT @nmhouston A2 another challenge (ok, pet peeve): vague email subject lines. #prodchat
  101. @TaraRodden The CEO of @hootsuite wrote this article about social media replacing some e-mail this year too  http://ow.ly/hHlv4 prprodchat
  102. @IsaPinaud At 1st I didn’t believe them, but, no, it really is a problem. That’s just crazy to me! #prodchat
  103. Q3: Control your day!! , sorry had to put that out there 🙂 #prodchat
  104. A2 I’m going to try that 5 sentence per email trick… Let’s see how that works out… #prodchat
  105. MT @apinaud: add to the email send from mobile phone. Then people are ok with only two words, even if you send from PC #prodchat
  106. @IsaPinaud Definitely! Why don’t they check their e-mails? Too many, not enough time do you think? #prodchat
  107. @michgunn @nmhouston I’m not sure if you agree with Natalie, Michelle. Care to be more empathic? ;-P #prodchat
  108. A3 Turn off the bells and whistles on all your devices for incoming mail
    #prodchat
  109. RT @rsidneysmith: @ErikJFisher Hey, Erik! Great to see you on the #prodchat // Great to be able to join tonight!
  110. 😀 RT @rsidneysmith: @michgunn @nmhouston Im not sure if you agree with Natalie, Michelle. Care to be more empathic? ;-P #prodchat
  111. A3 I check my e-mail first thing in the morning C&P any emails that need an action. As soon as I empty IN I know that I need to do #prodchat
  112. @nmhouston A3 Set times to check & process everything to task mgr or apply 2 min rule. Liberal use of delete key. #prodchat
  113. Especially while meeting f2f RT @michgunn: A3 Turn off the bells and whistles on all your devices for incoming mail
    #prodchat
  114. @nmhouston A2: big email challenge for me is getting to longer email responses sooner–I put them off for when I have more time #prodchat
  115. A3 I try to check/respond to email only a couple of times/day. I could spend all day in email. Need to create edges for focus #prodchat
  116. Q3: Short messages directed to one person ideally with a bulleted list of discussion points, especially to recap a long thread #prodchat
  117. A3 Don’t let email control you! RT @michgunn: A3 Turn off the bells and whistles on all your devices for incoming mail #prodchat
  118. A3: Centralizing my various email accounts in one inbox on mobile/desktop. In early 1998 when I discussed IMAP4 protocol! Woah! #prodchat
  119. @sendgine They don’t see the importance of it. They don’t understand it is easier than fb, twitter or any of these social sites. #prodchat
  120. A3 reading email only when I’m going to actually process it (reply, calendar, archive, delete) #prodchat
  121. @jenipillar A2: Have you thought of breaking the email responses into different emails? That’s worked wonders for me. #prodchat
  122. RT @nmhouston: A3 reading email only when Im going to actually process it (reply, calendar, archive, delete) #prodchat
  123. A3 And that pushes me to be quicker about my email replies… sort of a self-made deadline. I could rewrite for days… #prodchat
  124. A3 No email until daily review is done. That allow me to have a good perspective on the input
    #prodchat
  125. A3 You need to LIMIT the amount of stuff you subscribe to. Realistically, do you read the emails? If not unsibscribe! #prodchat
  126. A3.2 Also don’t check email unless you can process it #prodchat
  127. RT @nmhouston: Q3: WHAT WORKS FOR YOU? SHARE YOUR BEST EMAIL TIP OR STRATEGY! #prodchat
  128. RT @rsidneysmith: RT @nmhouston: A3 reading email only when Im going to actually process it (reply, calendar, archive, delete) #prodchat
  129. A3: I have “email processing” hours throughout my day, so as soon as I finish a project my alert tells me to process to zero. #prodchat
  130. @sendgine Thanks! I’m writing a guest post on email so your timing is excellent. #prodchat
  131. +1 RT @apinaud: A3 No email until daily review is done. That allow me to have a good perspective on the input #prodchat
  132. Strategy I use when it’s time sensitive email, I text them after sending asking them to check inbox. (I don’t like doing it tho) #prodchat
  133. A3 copy in only the portion of the previous email you need to directly reply to (or none at all) –avoid super long copies #prodchat
  134. A3: I love Unroll_me for unsubscribing from all that stuff! I use it once or twice a year now. cc @IsaPinaud #prodchat
  135. Nice rule! RT @apinaud: A3 No email until daily review is done. That allow me to have a good perspective on the input #prodchat
  136. @IsaPinaud Interesting!! Do you use social sites a lot in class collaboration? #prodchat
  137. A3 Also regarding subscriptions. My subcription site emails get deleted at the end of the day. #prodchat
  138. A3.3 Only read email from VIP on the phone. The rest can wait #prodchat
  139. A3: Quick pass to delete/archive anything I may have been copied in on, but doesn’t require a response. #Prodchat
  140. And I’m stealing that one! 😉 MT @apinaud: A3 No email until daily review is done. #prodchat
  141. A3: I just wrote a post on this. Basically, I unsubscribed to everything possible and attempt to process everything on first view. #prodchat
  142. Definitely. Otherwise it is too overwhelming! RT “@apinaud: A3.2 Also don’t check email unless you can process it #prodchat
  143. +1 “@nmhouston: A3 reading email only when I’m going to actually process it (reply, calendar, archive, delete) #prodchat
  144. +1 RT @michgunn: A3 Turn off the bells and whistles on all your devices for incoming mail #prodchat
  145. Yes! RT @nmhouston A3 reading email only when I’m going to actually process it (reply, calendar, archive, delete) #prodchat
  146. A3 use different email accounts for work, personal, etc streamlines your focus appropriately #prodchat
  147. RT @ErikJFisher: A3: Quick pass to delete/archive anything I may have been copied in on, but doesnt require a response. #prodchat
  148. A3 1 more thing with subscriptions. If you don’t read it today, will you read it in 2 days when you have 4 or 5 of them? Really? #prodchat
  149. RT @apinaud: +1 “@nmhouston: A3 reading email only when I’m going to actually process it (reply, calendar, archive, delete) #prodchat
  150. slick! MT @NYC_CoachO: Strategy I use when its time sensitive email, I text them after sending asking them to check inbox. #prodchat
  151. Me too! RT @michgunn: And I’m stealing that one! 😉 MT @apinaud: A3 No email until daily review is done. #prodchat
  152. Of course! Happy to help! 🙂 RT @TaraRodden: @sendgine Thanks! I’m writing a guest post on email so your timing is excellent. #prodchat
  153. RT @rsidneysmith: A3: I love Unroll_me for unsubscribing from all that stuff! I use it once or twice a year now. #prodchat
  154. @TaraRodden PS We’d love to see it and share it! When you are finished, would you send a link our way? #prodchat
  155. #prodchat A2: too many messages. It takes me too long to get to inbox zero
  156. @rsidneysmith We heard about Unroll_me the other day! Do you recommend it? #prodchat
  157. A3 you can turn off things like FB, Twitter notifications to email if you don’t need them, cut down on inbox clutter #prodchat
  158. That it is a great rule. Help you to identify real emergencies and just other people emergencies @michgunn #prodchat
  159. Good point. And everyone wants #zeroinbox! RT @dzikakis: #prodchat A2: too many messages. It takes me too long to get to inbox zero
  160. @nmhouston That doesn’t work for me. All my accounts land in the same inbox. #prodchat
  161. @rsidneysmith At first manually so I realized what I did not read at all and unsubscribed. Now its automatic. #prodchat
  162. Leave the inbox alone a few days, and then you’ll see patterns of what to eliminate. #Prodchat
  163. Q4: WHAT BENEFITS OR OBSTACLES DO YOU HAVE USING EMAIL ON MOBILE DEVICES? #prodchat
  164. RT @IsaPinaud A3 re: subscriptions. If you don’t read it today, will you read it in 2 days when you have 4 or 5 of them? Really? #prodchat
  165. @sendgine Between Unroll_me and Unsubscriber (http://otherinbox_com/unsubscriber/gmail/), they should get all those enewsletters! #prodchat
  166. RT @ErikJFisher: Leave the inbox alone a few days, and then you’ll see patterns of what to eliminate. #Prodchat
  167. I only have notification for VIP people. And take people out of VIP often 🙂 #prodchat
  168. RT @nmhouston: Q4: WHAT BENEFITS OR OBSTACLES DO YOU HAVE USING EMAIL ON MOBILE DEVICES? #prodchat
  169. @nmhouston Regarding this. I don’t let facebook send me emails. I don’t get 5k emails from facebook every five minutes now. #prodchat
  170. A2: Twitch to keep checking = con. Swipe to delete feels good = pro. #Prodchat
  171. A4 I was spending too much time on email. Checking it every time I got a notification was insane. #prodchat
  172. A3 I use @sanebox for prefiltering email. It does spam filtering, and un- vs important filtering. Monthly fee so very worth it! #prodchat
  173. A4: Mobile email check is great for clearing out the junk
    #prodchat
  174. @alexisgrant Glad you are here! This is our first #prodchat, and we’re loving it!
  175. A3: I noticed today that the first thing I do when I open my inbox is delete anything I can. It makes processing easier. #prodchat
  176. RT @rsidneysmith: RT @nmhouston: Q4: WHAT BENEFITS OR OBSTACLES DO YOU HAVE USING EMAIL ON MOBILE DEVICES? #prodchat
  177. @alexisgrant Hi, Alexis! Great to have you here on the #productivity chat this evening. Welcome! #prodchat
  178. Or eliminate e-mail completely! MT @ErikJFisher: Leave the inbox alone a few days, then you’ll see patterns of what to eliminate. #Prodchat
  179. MT @michgunn: A3 I use @sanebox for prefiltering email. It does spam filtering, and un- vs important filtering. Fee so worth it! #prodchat
  180. A4: I’ve noticed that I read things on my phone, think I need to write a longer response later and then it sits too long. #prodchat
  181. A4 I love mobile email The problem is you need hard rules & limits
    1. Only VIPs emails
    2. The rest only if I have time to process #prodchat
  182. i 2nd this emotion ~~~> RT @nmhouston: @rsidneysmith we might just have to do #prodchat Email…The Sequel 🙂
  183. A4 Exactly the benefit of @sanebox… no more insane inbox when checking email on mobile and just want to get to the important! #prodchat
  184. A4 it’s too easy to fill up bits of time with mobile email when maybe you could be gathering your thoughts, breathing, connecting #prodchat
  185. We hear you! RT @jodiacampbell: A4 I was spending too much time on email. Checking it every time I got a notification was insane. #prodchat
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