Use the ‘Yesterbox’ Method to Stay on Top of Your Inbox

Inbox management, like many other things, is a necessary evil in our everyday lives. As such, it is best to manage this issue using a strict system, but this can be difficult to implement and adhere to. As with many other things, finding the right system takes a lot of time and adds a new layer of stress to an already boring task. Here’s a simple system that doesn’t take a lot of time to use and can really help you finish your reading without overwhelming you. This is what we call “the box of yesteryear”.

What is yesterbox inbox management system?

This technique – and its funny name – both come from the late Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh, who described yesterbox as a way to “relieve email guilt.” The concept is simple: today, you only deal yesterday’s emails. It’s like a slightly stricter version of first in, first out (FIFO), and while I don’t always like FIFO, I recognize that it has its place in a complete productivity approach – and yesterbox is a great example.

Hsieh believed that “inbox zero” was not only an elusive goal, but a nearly impossible one. As soon as you start replying to emails, the replies come. By its very nature, email is a form of correspondence, meaning you send And receive – and for this to be effective, it must be continuous.

The problem is that you don’t know how many emails you will receive today. The only real and limited number you can count on is the number of emails you received. yesterdayso this is where you need to focus if you want to avoid getting caught up in the back and forth of immediate communication.

How to use Yesterbox

Start by choosing a time to process your emails each day. Ideally, this should take place in the morning, so that nothing too urgent from the day before falls through the cracks. Try using timeboxing to plan your day and block out a dedicated amount of time (about half an hour, depending on the volume of actionable emails you usually receive and the amount of work actually done through them) for email management each morning. Hsieh was a proponent of spending three hours on this task, but he was the CEO of a giant company, so be realistic about how long it will actually take you. Spend time trying different approaches to time management and creating to-do lists, like the 3-3-3 list or the 1-3-5 method. Figuring out how much time email management should take you, as well as how much of a resource it actually represents, will take a little effort, but these frameworks are helpful.

Use this time to only review and respond to emails you received the day before. Then filter out emails from the day before that will require more effort, whether it’s a long response or including attachments. You can star them or move them to a folder, but focus first on the ones that require simple answers or no answers at all. You’re more or less using the two-touch email management technique here, but you plan specifically to only apply it to yesterday’s messages. Go through each one before returning to those that will require more serious effort. Once done, don’t look again until the next morning.

This creates a limited to-do list that doesn’t last all day. By systematically checking each day’s emails, you won’t miss any of them either. The only real exception to this rule should be daily urgent emails regarding current tasks. If you’re expecting this, add the sender to your priority list to ensure you receive notifications and, if possible, ask them to make the subject line easily identifiable. Resist the urge to check emails related to anything other than urgent and immediate issues.