How to reduce urgency-driven email behavior

How I Handled 7 “Urgent” Pings in One Day as a Program Manager at Amazon One day last week, between 7:00am and 7:00pm, I got 7 different Slack pings that all started the same way: “Hey…this is kind of urgent, can you take a quick look?” By 10am, I was behind. By 2pm, I’d rescheduled two blocks of deep work. By 6pm, I realized not a single one of the requests needed same-day action. But the mental drain? Very real. Research shows our brains process urgency the same way they process threat. (Source: Harvard Business Review, 2021) So every Slack ping feels like a fire…even when it’s not. Now? I treat urgency like a signal…not a reason to panic. Here’s how I manage the flood without burning out: 1/ I ask “what breaks if this waits?” ↳ If nothing breaks, it gets deprioritized ↳ Simple filter. High return. 2/ I delay by default, not apology ↳ “Will review in the morning…let me know if it’s actually blocking” ↳ Most people respect clarity more than speed 3/ I preserve one protected block daily ↳ No Slack. No email. Just forward motion ↳ Chaos doesn’t cancel priority 4/ I bundle low-impact asks into a PM roundup ↳ I don’t task-switch every 30 minutes ↳ I batch respond with context and control 5/ I teach people how to ask better ↳ “Mind including the deadline + what’s blocked next time?” ↳ No snark…just standards You can’t stop people from thinking everything’s urgent. But you can stop reacting like it is. 📬 I share execution playbooks for calm operators weekly in The Weekly Sync: 👉 https://lnkd.in/e6qAwEFc What’s your system for surviving the fake urgency flood?

Everything is urgent! Until it cost $100K in missed deliverables That's what my customer kept saying. Every email marked "ASAP" Every request needed "immediate attention" My team was drowning in priorities. Sound familiar? Here's how we turned chaos into clarity: First, we used the Eisenhower Matrix: → True urgency: System outages → Important but planned: Feature releases → Delegate: Minor updates → Eliminate: Nice-to-haves The key? We did this WITH the customer. They helped categorize each request. Their buy-in made all the difference. Without it, this would have been just another failed process. The result? ✔️ Less team overwhelm ✔️ Clearer project milestones ✔️ Happy customer (they got what mattered) But here's the full toolkit smart leaders use to prioritize: 1. Eisenhower Matrix → Urgent vs important. Know where to focus → Spend less on fires, more on impact 2. Pareto Principle (80/20) → The vital few drive most results → Focus on the 20% that matters 3. Warren Buffett's 5/25 → Choose 5 goals, ignore the other 20 → Cut distractions to stay locked on priorities 4. RICE Method → Score by reach, impact, confidence, effort → Rank smart to get maximum return 5. MoSCoW Method → Must, Should, Could, Won't → Define essentials, defer the rest 6. ABCDE Method → Label tasks A–E, focus on A’s. → Do must-do’s first, delete E’s. But what about daily operations? Here's how I use these methods to spend more time with clients: 7. Time Blocking: 2 hours of deep client work daily → No meetings, no interruptions → Pure focus on their needs 8. Eat That Frog: Tackle client deliverables first → Before inbox & admin work → Fresh mind = best solutions 9. Batching: Group operational tasks → One focused admin block daily → Everything else? Delegated or automated Result? ✔️ 3x more client face time ✔️ Operations run smoothly in background ✔️ Finally got that work-life blend right 💡 Which method resonates most with you? Share below - let's learn from each other's experiences. ✨ Want more leadership tools like these? Subscribe to my Career Freedom Weekly Newsletter: https://lnkd.in/eciagfQn ♻️ Repost to help another leader find clarity 👋 Follow Stephanie Hills, Ph.D. for leadership insights that bridge life and work

📉 The noise-to-signal ratio: When every message is urgent, nothing is Great leaders aren’t loud. They’re clear. They don’t flood channels. They filter them. But let’s be honest. Somewhere between your team’s 47th “quick update” email and your Slack channel lighting up like Times Square on New Year’s Eve, clarity got buried in a landslide of urgency. 🔔 Here’s the uncomfortable truth: In most companies, everything is marked urgent… Which means nothing is. 🧠 What Eisenhower knew (that your inbox forgot) Named after President Dwight D. Eisenhower—who, just to be clear, was juggling World War II, the Cold War, and the literal launching of NASA—not a Q4 marketing deck. He used a dead-simple method to decide what to focus on: Ask two questions: 1. Is it urgent? 2. Is it important? Here’s what he found (and what most of your team hasn’t): Most “urgent” things… aren’t important. And most “important” things… don’t scream for attention. 🗂 The Matrix (no, not the Keanu one) Eisenhower's Matrix divides your chaos into four buckets: 1. Urgent & Important – Do it now (e.g., a regulator calls your mobile. Not ideal.) 2. Important but Not Urgent – Schedule it (e.g., strategic planning. You know, that thing everyone cancels.) 3. Urgent but Not Important – Delegate it (e.g., “Can you jump on a 17-person call to decide logo font weight?” No. You cannot.) 4. Not Urgent & Not Important – Delete it (e.g., your 34th LinkedIn notification today.) 🧭 How great leaders use it (and how you should too) ✅ They batch non-urgent chatter. That’s right—batch it. Email, Slack, updates... set time windows. You’re not a 24/7 drive-thru. ✅ They delegate panic properly. Just because it’s ringing doesn't mean you have to answer it. That’s what teams are for. Also: voicemail. ✅ They delete noise without guilt. Not every ping deserves a reply. Especially the “just checking in 😊” ones. ✅ They protect real urgency like oxygen. The things that actually matter? They focus, act, and move. Because urgency should create motion, not motion sickness. 📌 Bottom line: Be the filter, not the flood Good communication isn’t more messages. It’s fewer decisions left hanging. If your org treats every message like a five-alarm fire, your people will either burn out… or stop reacting entirely. And when everything is urgent, guess what gets ignored? The important stuff. So do your team a favor: Be the filter, not the flood. Be the signal, not the siren. #Leadership #ExecutiveMindset #DecisionMaking #Productivity #Management #Communication

11 Steps to break free from the ‘always-on’ culture (without putting your job at risk) The “always-on” hustle culture is draining us. You’re halfway through dinner when your phone buzzes. You glance down and see… “ASAP.” Your heart pounds. You push your plate aside. You miss your child’s story about their day. When did we let this madness take over our lives? We’ve normalized the belief that: Every ping demands immediate attention. Every email is an emergency. Every notification deserves a response. But here’s the truth: It doesn’t. That message marked “urgent”? It can wait. That email demanding “ASAP”? It’s rarely life-or-death. The real priority? It’s you. Your mental health is buckling under a system that glorifies overwork and punishes boundaries. Here’s how to break free: 1/ Set boundaries loudly and clearly. ⩥ Don’t expect people to guess your limits. State them: “I don’t respond to work emails after 6 PM.” 2/ Turn off notifications after hours. ⩥ Your brain needs space to recharge. Mute anything that isn’t urgent. 3/ Use email auto-responses. ⩥ Let people know your availability: “Thanks for your message. I’ll reply during working hours.” 4/ Stop glorifying busyness. ⩥ Being busy isn’t the goal. Achieving meaningful results is. 5/ Delegate and say No. ⩥ Not everything is your responsibility. Protect your time like it’s gold. 6/ Uninstall unnecessary apps. ⩥ Social media and work apps can wait. Reclaim your personal time. 7/ Schedule ‘Do Not Disturb’ time. ⩥ Block out focus hours or simply time to breathe. Treat it like a critical meeting. 8/ Hold others accountable. ⩥ Push back on unrealistic demands. Poor planning on their part isn’t your problem. 9/ Prioritize self-care like a meeting. ⩥ Whether it’s a walk, journaling, or yoga, put it in your calendar. Self-care isn’t a luxury, it’s essential. 10/ Redefine urgency. ⩥ Unless it’s a life-or-death situation, it’s not truly urgent. Stop treating it like it is. 11/ Lead by example. ⩥ Show what healthy work habits look like. Your team will follow your lead. This isn’t just about you, it’s a wake-up call for everyone. You are not a machine. You are not available 24/7. And anyone who expects that from you isn’t worth sacrificing your health for. Tomorrow still exists. Choose to live for it. - - - P.S. Which step do you struggle with the most? ♻️ Repost to help others set better boundaries. ➕ Follow Cristina Grancea for more on workplace culture.

Always-on teams don’t win. They burn out. (how to lead with calm, not chaos) Urgency culture looks fast. But it’s painfully inefficient. I’m not talking about real emergencies. But about the default setting of 'everything-is-priority'. 📩 Always-on pings. 🚨 Last-minute requests. 🔥 “Quick asks” that derail entire days. This kind of environment trains teams to panic, not to plan. It makes people busy, not productive. And in the long run? Your team members start burning out. Here are 7 ways to eliminate urgency culture: 1/ “This needs to go out today” is not a plan ↳ Last-minute asks drain energy and trust ↳ Urgency becomes white noise 💡 Use shared timelines with built-in buffer 2/ Urgency ≠ importance ↳ Urgent tasks aren’t always the most valuable ↳ Teams chase noise, not strategy 💡 Use the Eisenhower Matrix to refocus 3/ Leadership sets the pace ↳ If you’re always rushing, others will too ↳ You teach urgency with your behaviour 💡 Model calm prioritisation in team updates 4/ “Is this a real priority?” should be a team reflex ↳ Teach people to always ask what is urgent and not ↳ Helps teams push back on false fires 💡 Add urgency labels only if they need it 5/ Build real plans. Not just to-do lists. ↳ To do lists = short-term and reactive ↳ Planning = long-term and strategic 💡 Use agile boards and weekly planning cycles 6/ Define what actually counts as urgent ↳ Most teams never define what constitutes urgency ↳ Without it, every ping can feel critical 💡Share a urgency definition+examples when onboarding 7/ Urgency is often a symptom of poor planning ↳ Most fire drills are self-inflicted ↳ You can’t scale chaos 💡 Review workload vs OKRs weekly, not quarterly Teams don't move faster in chaos. They accelerate with clarity. ✅ The best leaders filter out noise, not amplify it. 💬 Which tip resonated the most with your experience? - - - ♻️ Repost to help lead with calm and not chaos. ➕ Oliver Ramirez G. for effective leadership. 📬 For in-depth weekly topics follow my newsletter: https://lnkd.in/e5Yj72Ne

Urgency culture is not a personality trait. It’s a symptom of: - burnout - trauma - fear of falling behind - self-worth tied to productivity - working in systems that reward speed over sanity We often confuse constant motion with progress. - Always rushing. - Always responding. - Always “on.” But deep down, we’re just tired and terrified to slow down. Because what happens when we stop? We fear : - losing momentum. - losing status. - losing ourselves. Yet urgency is the thing that’s costing us all three. Here’s how to reclaim your time and your calm: 1. Redefine responsiveness ↳ Decide when you're available and protect it. 2. Build buffer zones ↳ Add intentional gaps between meetings, messages, and tasks. 3. Wait before you react ↳ Take 10 seconds before replying. Let urgency detox from your nervous system. 4. Trim the noise ↳ Review your to-do list. Cut what's performative. Keep what’s essential. 5. Normalise slower replies ↳ Practice thoughtful > instant. Train others how to treat your time. Slowness is not laziness. It’s wisdom. Clear minds make better decisions. Rested people lead better lives. Remember: Presence > pressure. ♻️Repost to help someone break free from urgency culture. 🔔Follow Luke Tobin for frameworks on sustainable growth.

Please stop pinging me on Teams… Then following up on WhatsApp… To check if I saw your email… From twenty minutes ago. 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐦𝐲 𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲. We’re not in a crisis, we’re caught in a 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲. We’ve normalised hyper-responsiveness. We’re building work cultures on constant digital disruption. And it’s costing us: clarity, performance, and wellbeing. This is the urgency fallacy in action: the illusion that everything is both urgent and important. Why? We have Palaeolithic brains trying to navigate modern tech. Brains designed to hunt and forage at a natural cadence are now (constantly) bombarded by unsolicited alerts, red notification bubbles and digital noise that hijacks our attention. 🔴 Red = danger. Your brain doesn’t know it’s just another Teams ping. It reads it as a threat. It triggers the same stress response as if a tiger were chasing you. (Let’s be honest, some days…our Teams’ notifications feel like a tiger chasing us.) Here’s the truth: 🧠 Our Human Operating System (hOS) hasn’t evolved at the speed of our digital tools. We’re not wired to be always-on, nor are we designed to be distracted all day long. Every interruption drains cognitive energy (depletes our glucose), increases cortisol and fragments our focus. Boundaries aren’t resistance. They’re self-leadership. Let’s stop mistaking responsivity for value. Let’s stop confusing speed with impact. Your best work won’t come from urgency. It will come from clarity. Want to future-proof your team’s performance? Articulate your 𝐝𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐬 which are your team’s agreed digital norms, practices and principles that underpin hybrid work. Have clear “𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡-𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬” about responsiveness and establish a communication escalation plan so when there are legitimate, urgent issues, there’s a clearly delineated and understood path for escalating them, if the situation arises (hint, in most instances if something is really urgent a good old-fashioned phone call is often best.) I teach this inside my keynotes, performance workshops and with my Executive Coaching. Ready to shift your culture? #Leadership #WorkplacePerformance #DigitalWellbeing #HumanOperatingSystem #NeuroLeadership #SpaciousSuccess

Ever feel like you’re working hard but nothing actually moves? That’s the hidden tax of context-switching and most of us pay it all day long. Research shows it can take up to 23 minutes to climb back into deep focus after even a quick “got a sec?” ping. Multiply that by every Slack, email, and calendar pop-up and you’ll see why the day disappears. Here’s how I cut that tax to almost zero ⬇️ 1. Normalize asynchronous communication Urgency is rarely real. I tell my team: reply when you’re out of deep work, not the second a bubble lights up. It kills the always-on anxiety for everyone. 2. Park tasks outside your head Parking lot > To-dos. If a thought might boomerang while you’re in flow, capture it. Notebook, voice memo, Notion.....anything beats letting it rent space in your brain or causing you to jump from your current focus. 3. Batch, block and box Task batching: answer all email in one swoop Replying to LinkedIn comments at one time Time blocking: label calendar chunks “deep work,” “meetings,” “admin” Time boxing: Give each task a finish line before you start Structure beats willpower every time. 4. Remove the obvious distractions One tab. One window. One screen. Close what you know will drag you into a different head-space before it even tries. I literally ONLY have 1 tab open at a time. What do you think? Which of these is the hardest for you? Start here and you’ll buy back hours of true focus every week.