Financial Aid Hack: Productivity or technology trick that financial aid administrators use to cut through information overload, organize their data, and make their lives simpler.

The fight to keep the numbers of emails in your inbox manageable can be a constant battle. At times, it can seem impossible to manage email messages effectively because they continuously pour in day after day.

In fact, it is similar to the credit card and student loan debt that aid professionals counsel their students about. Like interest on debt, emails accumulate day after day, while we're at work or at home, and even when we sleep they still pour in. Before we know it, our emails - much like debt - threaten to overwhelm us as we teeter on the brink of email bankruptcy.

Declaring email bankruptcy is just what it sounds like. When people are so far behind on their emails and correspondence that there's no possible way they can catch up, they'll throw their hands in the air and exclaim, "I give up!" and then promptly and indiscriminately start hitting the delete button.

Email overload takes its toll on all workers' time and productivity and keeps us from the primary focus of our jobs - helping students.

The best way to avoid email bankruptcy is to steer clear of it in the first place. If you're close to email bankruptcy, take heart! There are things you can do to avoid starting completely over.

Subscribe to the Inbox Zero Philosophy

Although somewhat controversial, the inbox zero philosophy means that everyday your inbox reverts to a primordial state of complete emptiness. That means your inbox should be cleaned out everyday. Impossible you say? Maybe not. While many systems have risen to help workers attain a zero inbox, the basic action plan, as articulated by 43 Folders founder Merlin Mann, is quite simple.

1. Respond to emails that take the least amount of time first. If an email can be answered in less than two to three minutes, respond to those emails first. Users should be learning that if they want a rapid response they'll need to ask you specific, closed ended questions in a brief email (see Financial Aid Hack: Five Steps To Get People To Respond To Your Email). Otherwise they will expect that your answer will take more time.

   Flag or file emails that will take a longer response time. If an email can't be answered in less than a couple of minutes, file it away until you have time to tackle it. Sorting emails in this way prevents workers from spending all day in a reactive mode, constantly fielding emails with varying degrees of importance and timing needs. It is important when an email is filed away some sort of reminder task is also created so that it will be dealt with later.

2. Delete, or at the very least archive everything. If an email has no importance, delete it. If it needs to be saved, archive it. Trying to come up with a category for every email is cumbersome and can be counterproductive. Hierarchical folder schemes are archaic and unproductive as well because users end up lost in the catacombs of their own filing systems. Instead consider creating a simple filing system for main email topics only. For example, it might be wise to have folders for: human resources or specific long-term projects.

   Everything else can be placed in a generic archive folder. Some users simply create a folder for each month and place every email that isn't deleted into that folder. Many email clients such as Microsoft Outlook keep track of all emails received from a contact that makes it really easy to find an email no matter where you've saved it.

   What's important is to not leave emails in your inbox indefinitely. Instead, place an email out of sight and out of mind until it needs to be dealt with or recalled for review.

3. Don't use an email inbox as a to-do list. Email wasn't designed to be a to-do list. It can't give users due dates or notes about an item and a task generally ends up being ignored if it is kept in an inbox for too long. If an email requires further action, file it, flag it, or archive it and create an action item in a program that is built for to-do lists. Most comprehensive email clients like Outlook or GroupWise have to-do lists built in. There are several other to-do lists available online.

4. Clean it out, daily. To live the zero inbox philosophy it is important to clean out your inbox daily. That means taking it down to zero by deleting, archiving, filing, or creating a task or reminder for later action on every email.

If Email Bankruptcy Is Imminent

For those on the precipice of email bankruptcy consider spending an entire day - even if it's a weekend - employing some version of the steps outlined above. For those where email bankruptcy is eminent, Web Worker Daily suggests sending out a mass email to everyone explaining the situation such as:

Due to a technical issue, there is a possibility I may not have seen your email if it was sent in the past 4 weeks. If it is important and I have not responded please call me at xxx xxx-xxxx.

Sorry for any inconvenience.

No one needs to know that you're declaring email bankruptcy and just purging. It might also be a good idea to quickly go through your emails just looking for projects that could be on hold from superiors, provosts, vice-presidents, directors, or others who could exert influence on your professional future.

43 Folders founder Merlin Mann explained his zero inbox philosophy in-depth at a Google Tech Talk meeting in July, 2007 and his explanation is available online.

By Justin Draeger
NASFAA Assistant Director for Communications

Posted 09/13/07 to www.NASFAA.org. Redistribution to non-NASFAA institutions is prohibited. Please submit Web Site questions or comments to Web@NASFAA.org.