Breaking the cycle of email-induced stress

Drama doesn’t die in your inbox. It multiplies there. Ever get a long, frustrating text or email that makes your blood boil? You start typing back paragraphs of arguments, clarifications, and jabs you know you’ll regret later. Pause. Stop right there. If you want to end drama in your life and leadership, make this rule non-negotiable: no important or emotional conversations over text, email, or Slack. Zero exceptions. Digital conflict is a trap. You either fire off a reactive reply that makes things worse, or you obsess over crafting a “perfect” essay that entrenches your position. Both cost you time, energy, and relationships. Here’s the upgrade: escalate the conversation. Pick up the phone. Schedule a face-to-face. End the cycle before it drains you. Why? Because written words strip out tone, body language, and emotional context. That’s a wasp’s nest for misunderstanding. In contrast, live conversations let you hear each other, see each other, and actually resolve the tension instead of fueling it. Leaders who master this move save hours of wasted drama and unlock stronger relationships. Next time you feel the urge to type while triggered, remember: escalate the conversation, evaporate the drama. That’s how you build trust, end nonsense quickly, and lead like an adult.

You’re not burnt out, you’re being drained. And it’s happening in ways you don’t even notice. Not all stress looks like panic or pressure. Some of it is silent, sneaky, and strangely familiar. It’s the 37 tabs open in your brain. The vague email that makes you overthink. The unread message that lingers like a mental itch. These aren’t big problems. They’re micro-stresses, and they’re wrecking your energy. Here’s how they show up: ➡️ Constant pings that hijack your focus ➡️ Vague feedback that keeps you second-guessing ➡️ Too many tiny decisions, meals, outfits, replies ➡️ Tension in meetings you don’t talk about ➡️ Task-switching before finishing one ➡️ Saying “yes” when you mean “please leave me alone” ➡️ Smiling through the mental exhaustion of being “on” all day Each one feels like “just part of life.” Together, they drain your battery, daily. Here’s how to take your energy back: ✅ Name the Invisible Keep a micro-stress journal for 3 days. Track anything that made you tense or off, no matter how small. ✅ Create Energy-Protecting Boundaries Block focused work time Mute unnecessary notifications Set “email hours”, and stick to them ✅ Clear Up Confusion Early Ask for clarity before the emotional buildup starts Use this: “Can we walk through expectations so we’re aligned?” ✅ Reduce Tiny Decision Overload Automate the repetitive Prep meals, build routines, use templates Save brainpower for things that matter ✅ Schedule Micro-Recoveries Every 90 minutes, take 5 Stretch, breathe, step outside, or do nothing These small resets protect your nervous system ✅ Don’t Carry Everything Ask: “Is this mine to hold?” If not, let it go, mentally, emotionally, and energetically Leadership, creativity, connection, they all need fuel. Micro-stresses are stealing it. Take it back, one small shift at a time. ♻️ Repost to help others deal with micro-stresses on a daily. 👉 Follow Jason Osborn for more business, growth, and LinkedIn marketing tips!

If you're feeling stressed, bombarded and drowning in digital information. Here’s what you can do.👇🏻 If, like me, every single day you are getting a steady relentless stream of notifications your different devices - emails from work and personal email inboxes, IMs, DMs from iMessage, WhatsApp, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X, publications, newsletters…. You’re overwhelmed already. You want to, need to be focused but you're scattered. How do you: - Prioritise and keep on top of it all? - Not miss anything? - Reply to everything? - Do the rest of your job with focus, productively? - Not be overwhelmed? - Have anxiety-free sleep? This is the vicious cycle you’re feeling: 1. Deluge: You have overwhelm over the volume of information, the number of unsorted emails, messages, notifications, etc. your getting. 2. Fractured Focus: Your attention jumps between tasks, you’re unable to fully engage or concentrate on any one thing, you’re context-shifting. 3. Paralysis: Information overload leads to rising cortisol levels, inaction, procrastination. 4. Frazzled: Your anxiety rises as your attention span shrinks, your senses are narrowing. 5. Superficial Responses: Meaningful, thoughtful replies go out the window, and your decision-making compromises. 6. Drowning: You slow down even further as more demands pile up while your focus crumbles further, stress levels are rising. And the cycle starts all over again. Relentless information overload isn't just annoying - it's making us dumber, unproductive and stressed. It doesn’t respect the 9am – 6pm. You’re not alone either, the average person consumes three times more information now than they did 50 years ago. (Source: The Information Overload Research Group). 🖐🏻 But it doesn’t have to be like this. You can stop this Information Overload Cycle right now. ✅ Prioritise Ruthlessly: Focus on high-impact tasks, filter out the rest. ✅ Batch and Schedule: Dedicate specific times for email, social media, etc. ✅ Unsubscribe and Filter: Delete useless information sources, set email filters. ✅ Focus First: Timebox tasks, eliminate distractions, minimise context-switching. ✅ Offline Recharge: Schedule regular breaks, disconnect to refocus. ✅ Prioritise Selfcare: Embrace relaxation to manage stress and get good quality sleep. Remember, you're not alone and you’re not a machine. You can take back control and focus from the 24/7 bombardment of your devices! Tell me, how do you manage information overload? Please share your tips in the comments.

For as long as I can remember, staying organized has been key to my productivity. Yet recently, I found myself drowning in emails. Inspired by productivity expert Merlin Mann and organizational genius Marie Kondo, I decided to make a change. The result? A zero inbox that reduces my stress and sharpens my focus, ensuring I don’t miss crucial emails. I now have more time for strategic decisions that create an impact that matters. Here's what I did: 1. Purposeful Triage: I categorized my emails into five actions: delete, delegate, defer, do, or reply. This system brought immediate clarity and reduced overwhelm. 2. Trust in Teamwork: By delegating tasks to my capable team, I focused on what truly matters. 3. Unsubscribe with abandon: I cut through the noise by unsubscribing from unnecessary emails, allowing me to concentrate on important messages. If you’re overwhelmed by your inbox, try these strategies. Remember, productivity isn’t just about doing more—it’s about making space for what's important. What are your top tips for staying productive? Let’s share and learn together!

10 rules for CEOs drowning in emails. Start with No. 1 today. The biggest challenge for CEOs isn't scaling their business. It's getting trapped by emails. They start the day answering messages and by noon they feel productive... but they haven't actually got anything done. Here's how to break the cycle: 1. Set office hours for email. ↳ Pick two times to check your inbox and stick to them. 2. Delegate where possible. ↳ Let your team handle what you don't need to respond to. 3. Use templates for common replies. ↳ Save time by creating standard responses. 4. Unsubscribe and filter ruthlessly ↳ Delete what's unnecessary so only what's important reaches you. 5. Move strategic work outside of email. ↳ Everything about your business growth stays out of your inbox. 6. Audit your inbox. ↳ Identify what can be delegated or eliminated. 7. Batch your replies. ↳ Stick to set times instead of checking constantly. 8. Train your team. ↳ Set clear expectations on response times. 9. Automate where possible. ↳ Use filters and a trusted EA. 10. Protect your focus time. ↳ Block out hours for real work. Your inbox should serve you, not the other way around. Tell me which habit you're ditching first. ________________ 📌 This one’s worth keeping. Save it. Share it. Put it to use. 🔔 Follow Christine Carrillo for more no-fluff advice. 📩 My best insights don't live on LinkedIn. Get them here: https://bit.ly/4kfOEFj

Behind our tireless efforts, burnout often quietly builds. This Labor Day, take a moment to prioritize self-care. Here are some tips and tools to help you recharge and prevent burnout on the job. 1. BREAK THE EMAIL LEASH BY STOPPING THE PUSH Email is often the weapon of choice in business, with overflowing inboxes, “reply all” chains, and the ding that signals there is something new for us to read, possibly more to do. This has produced a state of hyper-reactivity, where we constantly react to whatever the latest issue or need is coming from our inbox. To break the cycle and regain control of my day, one of the most powerful steps I took was turning off email notifications. This was especially important to turn off on my phone. You get a dopamine squirt in your brain every time you get a notification that a new email hits your inbox, which becomes addictive. You can escape this endless cycle by turning off the automatic “push” of email in your phone settings. Doing this gave me control to choose when I wanted to check my email instead of it controlling me. The impact is remarkable. 2. EAT THE ELEPHANT ONE BITE AT A TIME – Todoist If you can feel your deliverables and assignments stacking up, or if you struggle where to begin with a task or project, think of the adage “eat the elephant one bite at a time.” Break those daunting larger tasks into smaller ones, and you can start to knock them off your list– and build momentum, which increases your energy. My favorite “to do” app is Todoist. Several years ago, I went through an experiment where I tested different apps. I settled on this one because it has smart technology. For example, you can type “tom 9am” within your action item, and it will automatically schedule it for you for tomorrow at 9:00 AM. It also allows you to share your to-do items with other team members without the overhead that many more fully-featured team task management apps have. Todoist integrates with Outlook, your desktop, and mobile devices. Lastly, for competitive people, it keeps a running total of your productivity percentage and completion streaks. 3. HEAL WITH A HIKE – OUTBOUND When you’re feeling overwhelmed or anxious, one of the best things you can do is go for a walk. If you can, take it further and go for a hike. I find it helps me focus and burn off any negative energy. Just being outdoors and walking among the trees, watching how the light reflects, and experiencing nature around me rejuvenates my mind, body, and spirit. Even when I’m on the road traveling for business, a short hike brings focus and clarity, and new insights. The Outbound app has been my go-to app for more than five years. Think of it as the TripAdvisor for hikes: You can search based on your current location, and it gives you a variety of hikes, from light, short walks to strenuous, multiday backpacking tracks. There are great reviews, photos, and directions on accessing the trails. #leadfortomorrow #burnoutprevention #laborday

"Do you ever feel like your inbox dictates your day?" I used to start my day swamped by emails. Urgent emails drowning out what’s important, pushing real priorities to the background. The worst part? Re-reading emails without ever clearing them. I was making two big mistakes: 🚫 Letting my inbox set my agenda. 🚫 Using it as a makeshift, terrible to-do list. If this sounds familiar, you're not alone. I've been in that never-ending cycle of email chaos. The breakthrough came with Inbox Zero. Not aiming for an empty inbox, but for control and focus. Here’s how I turned things around: Todoist: Became my go-to for organizing priorities. Mornings: Reserved for meaningful work, not emails. Emails: Checked only during scheduled blocks of time. This helped me concentrate on what matters for our clients at Guidehouse, delivering more value in less time. With life getting busier and time moving faster I realized it's not about getting more done It's about getting the right things done If you're stuck in email hell, here's my tip: You have the power to change that narrative. It all starts with not letting your inbox dictate your day. P.S. How many unread emails are sitting in your inbox? — Found this helpful? Follow Wyatt Sterusky I post regular insights on HR Tech and Professional Development #Productivity #TimeManagement #PersonalDevelopment