| Before the bathroom, before tooth-brushing, or | | | | inbox and go straight into the trash. This closes the |
| breakfast, you check your email. Your loved ones are | | | | gap between the "sometimes" rewards so your |
| begging you to break off spending so much time in | | | | experiences become more predictable. |
| front of the laptop. Seem familiar? It's not hard to | | | | 3. Set a realistic block of email time, perhaps divided |
| get involved in email addiction, because it follows a | | | | into 2 or more 15-45 minute daily sessions. Set an an |
| pattern of intermittent reward. Experts know the | | | | alarm if you must, to be sure you do not go over |
| quickest way to cure a dog's habits is to reward him | | | | the time. After awhile you will adjust the total time |
| appropriately for the sought after changes. | | | | to meet the need. |
| We check our inbox for a reward: a communication | | | | 4. Using your email program features, figure out how |
| from a loved one, a critical answer to a tech | | | | to separate your correspondence into categories of |
| question, a random surprise that can improve our | | | | "action needed" and "information". Attend to action |
| day. Sounds totally reasonable. And it is. Yet the very | | | | needed email right away. Save your information email |
| structure of how we receive these communications | | | | to do all at once later. |
| reinforces the intermittent reward system and plugs | | | | 5. Take back the phone! Handle everything you can |
| right into our animal brain. We page through piles of | | | | by phone. Let your correspondents know you want |
| useless email looking for that gold nugget. | | | | to use email to set phone appointments rather than |
| Here are 5 simple tricks to help you if you fear you | | | | electronically. Bring back the human contact this may |
| are an email addict. The idea is to get the process of | | | | be replacing in your life. That human contact is one of |
| stimulus/random reward interrupted. | | | | the needs that may be feeding the obsession with |
| 1. Identify the extent of your habit. How much time | | | | email. |
| do you spend in front of your email? How much time | | | | 6. Use a gentle but determined hand with yourself |
| reading through what is essentially junk and time | | | | during your changes. Only check electronic |
| wasters? It's critical to recognize and assess the | | | | correspondence during your scheduled times. When |
| actual impact it is having on your daily life. | | | | you have a deadline for a critical assignment, try |
| 2. Use features in your email program like filters to | | | | shutting your email down for periods to find out if |
| automatically select out and remove from your | | | | you will accomplish more. Let others know you have |
| attention any non-essential mail. Employ labels and | | | | decided not to permit the stress of email control |
| folders to collect legitimate communications such as | | | | your daylight hours. For important matters, call you |
| friends, family, business related, work associates. | | | | on the phone. Reward yourself with real human |
| Then you will not be combing through junk to get to | | | | contact. |
| valid emails. I have several categories that bypass my | | | | |