Emails suck. As a faculty member I have to spend large parts of my day responding to emails, to serve what Cal Newport calls "the hyperactive hivemind" where decisions are made by this constant back and forth of emails. Faculty can't eliminate emails completely, but I have found a few things to help me manage my email load, which could help others.
Two precautions:
1. Each of our email systems are different, yet most will have a version of what I am suggesting. I use Outlook for my work email, and I am confident that these ideas could work for you in Gmail, Mail on Mac, etc.
2. Just as our email systems are different, you may use a different learning management system (LMS) than what my institution uses, Canvas. This is not a big deal as most (Moodle, Blackboard, etc.) have settings similar to what I use.
Now that I've gotten that out of the way, here are four tips to reduce how much time, effort, and energy you spend on emails as a faculty member.
