How many legitimate messages do you receive every day? I’m not talking about all the spam that drives us nuts, but emails, and other messages from coworkers, colleagues, and vendors. If you’re like me, it’s probably 100 or more. Dealing with each one consumes a portion of the blood glucose or sugar energy that powers our body and brain. As a result, we can lose the edge on our energy for concentrating on more important tasks.
Inevitably, the majority of these messages turn out to be information we don’t need to know, already know, or are some sort of “keeping you in the loop” message. Whose idea was it anyway to invent a “Reply All” button?
But here’s the thing. Most of us don’t feel empowered to do anything about it. Or we don’t want to take the time to really deal with it. We just endure this heartburn and physical drain. Now, add this to the endless meetings, computer glitches, slow internet speeds, and “helpful” updates designed by software engineers. Have you ever yelled “Stop helping me!” at the computer when one of these reminders appears just as you know exactly what to say in the memo you’re writing? You’re not alone. I’ve met people who are apprehensive about taking a few days off for fear they will return to hundreds of emails.
But if you don’t handle these situations, they will handle you. Several years ago, a colleague of mine came back from a restful vacation to find 800 emails in her in-box. Her first thought was, “How on earth am I going to be able clear all these?” But her second thought was, “I wonder what would happen if I just deleted them all and see who really needs to connect with me. Surely they’ll send a follow-up.” And that’s exactly what happened.
Can you do something like this? Yes! One of the things I have learned over the years about the best decision makers is that they don’t ask permission before taking action. If what they think they should do makes sense to them, they just do it. If something goes wrong or they overstep, they simply apologize and learn from the experience. They also encourage those they supervise to do the same thing.
You’ve probably heard someone say, “It is easier to gain forgiveness than permission.” Considering the risk-adverse society we have become, this approach has become ever more critical to success and peace of mind. When you’re facing an overwhelming number of emails, or dealing someone else’s uncertainty or delay in deciding, just act. With few exceptions, things will turn out just fine. And if they don’t, apologize, learn from the experience and move on. Your brain will thank you.