The average professional receives around 120 emails a day(nowe okno), amounting to roughly 43,800 emails a year. No matter what industry you work in, that’s an overwhelming amount of business email to deal with. 

Whether you have hundreds of unread emails piling up, or spend hours a day organizing your inbox, you’ve likely wished for a better, easier approach to this ubiquitous task.

What if there were a way to empty your inbox every day, without missing important messages or cutting into your workflow?

Enter “inbox zero,” a method that can aid professionals in keeping their email problem at bay, while freeing up precious time for the work that really matters. 

In this article, we’ll discuss ways you can implement this inbox organization method into your workflow that make life easier and less stressful. Pair the inbox zero method with Proton’s privacy-first tools, and you’ll be on your way to a more productive and streamlined work-life balance within no time.

What is inbox zero?

Managing your inbox — it’s the ultimate Sisyphean task. One moment your inbox feels tolerable, and the next, you’re getting inundated with emails, replying to one after the other while the “unread” folder grows out of control.

If keeping your inbox organized feels like you’re constantly rolling a boulder up a mountain, only for it to roll back down every time you reach the top, then you know how stressful email can be. 

That’s why productivity expert Merlin Mann originally coined the inbox zero method as a way to encourage better email management, increase productivity and most importantly — relieve unnecessary stress that a full inbox can bring. 

Why is keeping my inbox organized so difficult?

There are a handful of reasons why your inbox never seems to truly feel organized — or if it does, it’s only fleeting. 

One way to cut down on a cluttered inbox is to minimize the number of newsletters and emails you’re subscribed to. Or maybe your email address is on marketing or PR lists that you don’t need. While a lot of your inbox may be filled from emails that are important to your job, take a moment to identify the root of the clutter, and weed out any recurring emails that aren’t necessary for work.

Proton’s Newsletters view enables you to see and manage all your email subscriptions in one place, making it easy to unsubscribe from lists that are no longer relevant to you.  

Isn’t there an app for that?

There are plenty of tools on the market that can help with inbox organization, but they aren’t made equal. 

Many of these free services aren’t really free at all — they use your data and sell it to companies to keep their services functioning. Tools like Unroll.me can be tempting as a quick and easy way to unsubscribe from newsletters without having to do any of the legwork — but the company was once found selling its users’ data to Uber(nowe okno). 

Instead, opt for a privacy-first email provider like Proton Mail, which offers a built-in auto-unsubscribe feature and never, ever sells your data. 

How to achieve inbox zero

Ready to learn how to actually get to inbox zero? The five tenants of this inbox organization method are actually quite simple. They are:

Delete

Seems obvious, right? But the reality is, we’re more afraid to click delete than we should be. Not every email requires a response, and it’s physically impossible to reply to every email you receive. If you don’t plan on responding to a message, and you don’t need to archive it, simply click the delete button.

If you’re worried that you could delete an important email, relax. Most email clients keep your deleted messages in a trash folder, and with Proton, its contents remain in that folder for 30 days, so you can retrieve something if you deleted something important by accident. 

Once you’ve gotten the hang of letting go,, take it a step further by archiving or deleting everything in your inbox that’s more than three months old.

Delegate

If an email was sent to you but you know another colleague can respond quicker, forward those emails to coworkers who have more time or expertise to handle the matter. 

This is something that not everyone will be able to implement equally, and you’ll need to use your best judgement when deciding if you can pass off an email or task to someone else.

If your work environment doesn’t allow you to delegate emails to your coworkers, it’s vital that you learn how to prioritize your emails, and develop a system that works for you. 

Respond

If you know your response will only take a minute and it won’t interrupt you from the task at hand, take a moment to reply — but not if it risks losing your momentum.

Defer

Have emails that require more attention? Move them to a different folder and respond to them when you have less on your plate. 

Using folders, flags (or stars), and labels can be a helpful way to take note of emails that need a response, so you can return to them once you have time.

With Proton Mail you can also hit snooze, and quickly add a reminder so your important emails never get lost in the shuffle.

Do

If the sender asks you to do something you know won’t require a lot of time, take a moment to complete the task so it doesn’t snowball and become an issue later. 

If you can’t complete the task in a matter of minutes, add the task to a calendar with a deadline, and set a reminder so you don’t forget.

What does Inbox Zero look like today?

Mann coined the inbox zero method close to two decades ago, and a lot has changed in the way we communicate and use technology since then.

While the inbox organization method was first used to motivate busy professionals to get their inboxes down to zero unread emails, the method has transformed over time as a way to achieve better organizational skills and significantly reduce the time and brainpower one typically spends on email. After all, the time saved on reading emails is precious time that can be used elsewhere. 

Mann even acknowledged his famous method’s contradictory name in an articl(nowe okno)e that he reposted(nowe okno) on his website this year. In it, he wrote:

“The titular ‘zero’ in Inbox Zero is not about the number of email messages that are sitting in your inbox at a given time. And, contrary to popular opinion, it’s absolutely not about spending hours of your precious day trying to achieve that empty inbox at any cost. That’s just monkeyballs.”

And that resonates more now than ever. 

In an age where we can be accessed at any time of the day, morning or night, at work or not, how we use our time matters. Learning how to manage your inbox, rather than it managing you, is just one key to living a life with better balance and efficiency. Which can also translate to better happiness in the workplace, and out.

According to Mann, the inbox zero method is less about actually achieving net zero emails, and is rather a “philosophical practice” of learning what distractions we allow into our digital workflow, and when — “and, then, to responsibly but mindfully tend to those inputs in a way that is never allowed to hinder our personal commitment to doing the work that really matters to us.”

Inbox zero might not be realistic for you — here’s what we suggest instead

The inbox zero method can feel like a lofty goal, and while it sounds enticing, it might be unsustainable for your work style.

For some people, seeing an inbox not at zero might trigger more undue stress. If that sounds like you, it’s important to implement a strategy that works for your lifestyle — and really, that’s what Mann’s method is actually about. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, try the following:

  • Keep realistic goals, like limiting your unread emails to 15 or less.
  • Set boundaries, by giving yourself 24 or 48 hours to respond to emails.
  • Create a system, using folders, flags, and labels, that works for you. That way, you can organize your inbox without having to achieve “inbox zero,” which might in fact be the real inbox zero, anyway.
  • Use Proton’s Newsletters view, which gives you a dedicated space to read and organize your subscriptions, separately from your inbox.

How to keep your inbox organized with privacy in mind

You wouldn’t go to work without showering and brushing your teeth. Your online hygiene is equally important. To make sure your digital footprint is healthy and secure, consider implementing the following weekly habits:

  • Audit your inbox and delete or archive emails you don’t need.
  • Unsubscribe from newsletters that you don’t need, and use Proton’s Newsletters view for the subscriptions you want to keep.
  • Update your filters and folders so important emails don’t slip through.
  • Check your apps’ permissions to make sure you aren’t sharing your data with untrusted sources.

Keep your inbox clutter-free with Proton

Proton Mail doesn’t just help you with inbox organization, it also keeps your data safe, making sure that your emails aren’t accessible to anyone else but you.

That’s because Proton Mail is end-to-end encrypted — so you never have to worry about us scanning your emails or selling your sensitive information.

With features like Newsletters view, snooze and auto-unsubscribe, Proton Mail makes it easier than ever to achieve inbox zero within a privacy-first platform. 

If you’re ready to take control of your workflow — and your privacy — sign up for a free email with Proton Mail today.

Frequently asked questions about inbox zero

What is inbox zero?

The inbox zero method is an email management technique coined by productivity expert Merlin Mann. The method is a common strategy that teaches people how to delegate tasks, respond to emails, and use their time in an efficient manner, which can keep them on track throughout the day. 

Is inbox zero really that helpful?

It can be. Depending on how you use Mann’s strategy, the inbox zero method can be an incredibly helpful tool. Remember, inbox zero isn’t about never having any emails in your inbox, rather, it’s about minimizing the time one spends reading and replying to emails, so you can do the work you’re actually paid to do.

How can I organize my inbox while ensuring my privacy?

Use a privacy-first email provider, like Proton Mail, to manage your inbox while making sure your messages aren’t being scanned and your data bought and sold. 

Is unsubscribing from emails part of inbox zero?

While it isn’t one of the tenants of inbox zero, deleting is, and unsubscribing from unnecessary subscriptions and newsletters can ensure you have less email to delete every day. 

How many unread emails should I have?

That number is a personal choice, however, we recommend trying to keep your unread emails under 15 at the end of each day, so you can return to work the next day with fewer things to stress over.