A WORKFLOW Action Plan For Skillfully Navigating and Effortlessly Processing the Anxiety-Producing Emails That Flood Your (Gmail) INBOX Every Hour.

FOUNDATION: Automated Gmail Filters Is The First Step To Super Fast Email-Based Workflow

A Gmail Filter allows you to automatically organize, archive (skip the inbox), delete, mark as spam and best of all, send incoming messages to a tailor-designed filing system (by use of LABELS).

Filters work by you defining a single or stacked search criteria.

All messages that match the search criteria are then filtered by the search’s action(s).

I wanted to know beforehand, that wandering into email wasn’t going to send me down a rabbit hole or zap my energy after being triggered by some unprofessional comment, posture or inconsiderate languaging.

Too many times, I’ve opened a message and found myself still typing the REPLY an hour later.

Or the less dramatic, looking at unread emails and then marking them as UNREAD because I’m not ready to process and complete them.

WARNING: Without Automation, Every Message Will Work You To Exhaustion Every Time…

This email filtering system can change your life and do wonders for your mental health.

But only if you’ll do The SETUP. I liken this to cleaning your garage.

You already have the skills to do this. You just need the desire (and the instructions in this post).

I’ve invested the 7 days to simplify much of what’s required. The END was the hardest.

I had to enter the Search Criteria and DELETE the Old Messages (5,000+).

Took about 3 hours (of deciding what to filter, file and trash).

Now my INBOX is a safe place for my mind to wander into.

Instead of trying to hide or delete what I do not want to see, I’ve engineered an email filtering system which shows me the content I want to see FIRST (because the intelligence built into the filter implies that the message contains actionable content that I can use to make a NEXT Action decision quickly).

Shall we do the same for Gmail INBOX?

Making Email Magic Happen In 10 Minute Blocks (Every Hour)

This email filtering system builds on the success of The To Do List (40-10-10) Method.

It works under the premise of maximizing the 60-minute time block.

  • 40 minutes of full engagement on a single task or a group of related tasks
  • 10 minutes of processing and completing email or capturing voice mails
  • 10 minutes of refreshing activity (before the next 40-minute full engagement)

The VIDEO Roadmap: David Allen #1

The key to making the email magic happen is your system for getting things done.

The most effective system treats everything that comes into your “work space” as STUFF.

Just STUFF (initially)

Only later, during the CLARIFY Stage, does this STUFF get processed.

Until then, all you need is a CAPTURE method that you trust (which you email address already satisfies).

Watch and listen as David Allen shares his system for getting things done.

Open Flow and Eliminate Drag In Your System

  • A) Capture
  • B) Clarify
  • C) Organize
  • D) Reflect
  • E) Engage

Time Is Not The Issue

  • A) What You Do With Yourself During A Time Block Is The Issue
  • B) What Would You Do With More Time?
  • C) Working Harder Is Also Not The Answer… But The Art of Work

Get Every Commitment (or Potential Commitment) Outside Your Head

  • A) Create Trusted “External” Buckets
  • B) Make Effective Executive Decisions
  • C) Commit To A Successful Outcome

Control and Perspective Must Work Together

  • A) Keep No Commitment Inside Your Head
  • B) The Reason Why Stuff Is Still On Your Mind
  • C) The Relationship Between “On Your Mind” and “Getting Things Done”
  • D) Control and Perspective Are The Two Aspects Of Self Management
  • E) The 5 Stages of GTD Help You Gain Control
  • F) The 6 Horizons of Focus Help You Increase Perspective

Download GTD Workflow Advanced Infographic (Login Required)

YouTube video

The VIDEO Roadmap: David Allen #2

In addition to the GTD (Getting Things Done) Fundamentals, David Allen recognizes the importance of Purpose and Vision.

Without Purpose and Vision, you have no efficient and effective way of filtering the STUFF that gets CAPTURED.

Whatever you can filter out and not have to PROCESS or CLARIFY, preserves energy, time and other resources to execute the STUFF that you’ve defined as important.

Quality Filtering equals CONTROL.

In this video, discover the best way to plan, how your brain is the master planner and what your imagination activates.

Purpose

  • A) What the best way to plan?
  • B) The master planner is your brain.
  • C) Move from Impulse to Reality by defining Purpose

Vision

  • A) Get more and better ideas when you write things down
  • B) What would mean success for me for the thing you’ve picked?
  • C) Imagination activates your ability to define Vision

Ideas

  • A) Imagined vs Reality creates tension and tension prompts the brain to show you ideas through Brainstorming.
  • B) What’s the very NEXT Thing you must do?
  • C) Create a container to make ideas actionable

Structure

  • A) Most people don’t trust that they know how to plan
  • B) There is a universal Fear out being out of control
  • C) Without structure, most ideas will fall flat

Next Action

  • A) Purpose defines your target
  • B) Vision helps you see your way to it
  • C) Ideas help you navigate the obstacles
  • D) Structure helps you establish consistency

YouTube video

Collaborate. integrate. transform.

HCI Statement: Being Powerfully Productive

STOP Doing This: Managing Chaos

STOP Managing Chaos. STOP Navigating Chaos. STOP letting your Gmail INBOX and its default settings, dictate what you see and how you experience email-based communication. There’s a better way.

START Doing This: Think Mental Health

START processing what matters now. Implement the Email Filtering System outlined in the post to GET MORE of the right things done Faster, Better and In Support of quality mental health. You deserve it!

EXPLORE This: Making It All Work

Consult the Getting Things Done website and Making It All Work (Amazon Link). Also get the To Do List (40-10-10) Method to help you maximize each hour of your workday.

PROCESS: The 7 Day Secret Workflow Alterator

This 7 Day Action Sequence is facilitated using our Bridging the WORKFLOW Gap System. You’ll employ a Think-On-Paper technique to help you create Workflow Process Efficiency in 7 days or less.

I’ve discovered that how you start greatly effects how you’ll finish. For this reason, I start my Prototype Projects on Saturday because it provides a larger block of time to establish the foundational elements.

Once I’m back in the work environment on Monday, I have a vision and plan for the PROTOTYPE that I intend to create and validate by Friday.

After validating, I share my experience on the website to invite you to apply what I’ve learned (as well as what I’m learning) to your WORKFLOW.

Support Tools For This Prototype Project

  • Purchase and Download PDF Version of This Post (Including 7 Day Action Sequence)
  • Purchase and Download Bridging the WORKFLOW Gap Worksheet

Day 1 (Sat): CONTEND Phase

On the first day, you’ll capture the current reality using the Bridging the Workflow Gap worksheet below.

I’ve captured my responses and provided for you to review in the Accordion-styled sections below the image.

Click the PLUS symbol to see details.

  • My HCI for this 7-Day Prototype Project: How Can I Skillfully Navigate and Effortlessly Process the Anxiety-Producing Emails That Flood My INBOX Every Hour
  • I was thinking about mental energy when I started this project.
  • Oftentimes, I’m exhausted not by the amount of work or its intensity.
  • What gets me is how I respond to the work that shows up, that I can do, but hate doing (because of the initial feeling I get when I see it).
  • Certain people’s names and certain words in a message or subject line, can be triggers that end up zapping my energy.
  • Since I cannot discard the task or delegate it, I’m left with doing it from a place that does not have access to my best thinking and ability.
  • It’s almost like being cut off from my skills and strengths.
  • For instance… voicemails. I can listen to the entire 3-minute message only to discover that I still have to call the person to find out what they need. Then we’re playing phone tag for a few days. Very irritating.
  • After some back and forth, I decided to figure out a way to control what I see first, as well as categorize messages based on recurring criteria.
  • By doing this, I can handle certain tasks (which require extra energy)… when I have extra energy.
  • I figure that some things might be tackled first thing. Others, in the flow of things when I feel strongest and smartest (and perhaps, when a collaborator is present to bounce ideas about how to best get it done).
  • The primary WIN for me is Energy (Mental Agility).
  • At the end of a 40-minute work session, I want to feel great about what I’ve (both for myself and the people I’ve served).
  • When I achieve this, my 10-minute session with email-based service requests is highly productive.
  • If I go into email drained or depleted in some way, it’s not a good experience and quite possibly a rabbit hole that I’ll get stuck in for the next hour.
  • I not only look forward what I’ll create by Friday, but also what I’ll learn from the daily quest of solving a single problem (over 7 days).
  • I’ve been documenting consistently as I REFLECT at the end of the day.
  • I’m discovering new resources and gaining incredible perspective (about myself, others and new ways to use resources I already have).
  • There’s something amazing about giving yourself to ONE Thing at a time… I’ve chosen to do it for entire week.
  • The biggest obstacle for me is clearly the number of messages (both read and unread)
  • To create an effective email filtering system, I had to figure out a way to pre-process all of those messages.
  • New Messages.
  • Read Messages.
  • Aging Messages.
  • Chat Messages.
  • Calendar Events.
  • Spam and Phishing Messages (These jokers create a whole a different level of anxiety because they’re sneaky).
  • The pre-processing is basic GTD Methodology (Capture > Clarify > Organize > Reflect > Engage)
  • The email account itself already does a good job at CAPTURE
  • But fails to CLARIFY (whether or not it’s Actionable)
  • And definitely misses the mark to ORGANIZE (which is to put email where it belongs)
  • What to File.
  • What to Trash.
  • What to Schedule.
  • What to Do Right Now.
  • What to Delegate (if you have such an option).
  • I started with What Do I Want To See 1ST when I open Gmail?
  • This revealed a pretty significant shift in my point of view about 1st Things 1st.
  • It also introduced me to the built-in email configuration options that allowed me to automatically pre-process emails upon receipt.
  • I established an email filtering system that Captures, Clarifies and Organizes (Automatically), based on my priorities.
  • In the past, I’ve centered my processes around someone else’s agenda (not taking into account how this affected me psychologically).
  • While email is never going to send me to the mental facility, the typical experience has caused me to put off checking it until later.
  • Only my top tier email senders received my attention and then I was out of there.
  • Now, I get to think about me 1st… and as result, have more of me to share with those I’ve categorized as my See 1st Clients.
  • The one danger that comes to mind is the possibility of damaging my reputation when things fall through the cracks.
  • Because Gmail uses pagination to display messages, it’s possible to completely ignore some emails for days or weeks (or until someone sends you a nasty gram asking did not get the message I sent you 5 days ago).
  • I don’t like waiting beyond what is reasonable for a response, so my email filtering system has to account for this reality. A search for in:anywhere is:unread after:7d will show you messages received during the last days that you haven’t worked).
  • Other hidden dangers that are overlooked (because they appear to be invisible are):
  • Missed Opportunity.
  • Delayed Action.
  • Personal Anxiety.
  • Guilt, Fear or Worry.
  • Reduced Life Enjoyment.
  • Lack of Concentration.
  • Apprehension of Too Much To Do.

Day 2 (Sun): PROTOTYPE Phase Begins

This project, like others you’ll encounter in the 7DS Community, must be experienced and discovered.

My go to strategy for beginning strong is an OPEN kind of Focus.

I Focus on SPEED.

And then remain OPEN to how I achieve it.

If you’re like me, you’ll find the essential building blocks for creating speed in your Existing Workflow Process.

So that’s where we’ll start.

Days 3 (Mon) Through 7 (Fri): Create and Deliver your PROTOTYPE

Day 3 (Mon): Mastermind A Better Way: OLD Workflow Process

  1. Initially, my email view was set to Unread First.
  2. Every message had to be individually processed to discover what to do (based on the content)
  3. I’d scan the UNREAD messages to get rid of the ones that I could process by subject line alone.
  4. This would move some of the other messages from page 2.
  5. Then I’d scan for Key Senders, open and begin processing (at least to send the appropriate response).
  6. Determine Required Action > Complete Required Action > Move To the Next Message
  7. Basically, I’d stay in Emailville until I was ready to do something else (which usually involved leaving the office).
  8. At some point, I’d scan other messages (realizing that more messages have arrived from Key Senders).
  9. Lesser priority tasks are constantly bumped down a position (and this is not good for business relationships).

Day 4 (Tue): Your Strengths BLUEPRINT

For this Prototype Project, I needed to be Strategic, Inventive and Self-Propelled.

This prompted me to study others who have found a way to be more effective and productive with email.

I found two experts who were super helpful.

Ashley expanded on the work published by Andreas 8 years earlier.

Andreas focused on an empty inbox using GTD Methodology.

Ashley incorporated visibility controls (meaning the email is there, but you don’t see it until you want to see it).

I combined the GTD Flow of Andreas and Strategic Visibility Design of Ashley with Energy Management for Sound Mental Health.

Together, these three became INBOX Mind Flow.

  • INBOX is the Capture Tool for email-based communications, that you TRUST, because you’ve designed it to respect your time, energy and expertise.
  • Mind is your command center for making things happen, which must be protected from the many triggers which are passed along through email.
  • Flow is the ability to go in and out of email (whenever you decide), without feeling overwhelmed, anxious, irritated, infuriated, discouraged, perplexed or apprehensive.

Day 5 (Wed): Integrations (STOP Doing This and START Doing This)

STOP Doing This: Refine Your Integrations

  • I decided to stop feeling miserable or having low-level anxiety about processing email.
  • Email would no longer hijack my attention and shift my mind state.
  • I made an agreement with myself (to figure out a way) to end the need for multi-reply emails (you know the 7+ messages that look like gibberish when you open the thread).

START Doing This: Refine Your Integrations

I decided to integrate 6 things to frame a solid foundation for my Email Filtering System:

  • Intelligent Capture: Route email upon receipt.
  • EER (Extra Energy Required) Folder: Send messages from individuals who historically have shown up in an unprofessional posture or tone.
  • Pre-processing Galore: Gmail doesn’t limit the number of filters you can apply, so use them to File On Receipt (keeping your standard INBOX to under a dozen messages per hour… most of which you’ll likely delete >>> or filter going forward).
  • One-Touch ACT: You open it, you work it. Don’t click the UNREAD button to back out of it.
  • Label-Based Statuses: After you work it, give it 1 of 3 Statuses using Gmail LABELS
  • 00_Task Awaiting Reply
  • 00_Task In Process
  • 00_Task Is Complete)
  • Old Crap Out: Old emails got to go (except for reference material > 08_Reference).

Multiple Inboxes View: Filter Messages Into 5 Key Groups

  • I was able to experiment with an INTRAPRENEUR setup and ENTREPRENEUR setup.
  • The only difference is how the TOP 5 Inboxes are named.

Key Discovery: Quality Mental Health Is Within Our Control… Especially When You Consider Email As An Ongoing Source of Anxiety and Energy Drain

  • Freedom (I get to decide what I see 1st).
  • Peace (By re-engineering the email environment, I make it a safe place for my problem-solving and creative mind to enter).
  • Aliveness (When I come out of an email session, I’m still together with strong posture and emotionally stability).

Day 6 (Thu): ALTER: Capture and Organize Your New WORKFLOW Process

The new WORFKLOW Process is an Email Filtering System which leverages built-in Gmail configuration options.

I studied several implementations from different people and decided on (Multiple Inboxes + a Label-based Filing Structure + 3 STARS to define the status of the required action).

  1. Open Gmail to pre-processed messages.
  2. The Multiple Inboxes allows you to configure up to 5 (which I’ve numbered and named in the above image).
  3. The Default INBOX is shown at the bottom of the Top 5 (which I selected in the configuration).
  4. After doing the work of date-based search for Read and Unread (in:inbox is:unread before:01/01/2023), I quickly evaluated the search results, filing accordingly what I wanted to keep, then deleting the rest. I repeated this until the INBOX had zero messages.
  5. The Top 5 Inboxes are the people and messages I prioritize.
  6. Each Inbox also has a matching Label.
  7. Inbox content = UNREAD Only
  8. Label content = READ and UNREAD
  9. I determine the Required Action and Execute.
  10. Then I marked the with 1 of 3 Statuses
  11. 00_Task Awaiting Reply
  12. 00_Task In Process
  13. 00_Task Is Complete
  14. No longer do I open an email and then set it back to UNREAD. It gets processed immediately.

Inbox Clean Up, Filtering and Labels

Search operators are essential to cleaning up you INBOX and keeping it clean.

FILTERING all emails based on what you want to see first is imperative.

  • Build it like a pyramid (with the most important people at the top).
  • Title doesn’t guarantee someone top-level priority (their level of professionalism does).
  • Core Tasks form the base of your of pyramid.

My Intrapreneur Pyramid looks like this:

  • 00_Me (Label Only)
  • 01_Directors (Top 5 INBOX + Label)
  • 02_Team (Top 5 INBOX + Label)
  • 03_Executives (Top 5 INBOX + Label)
  • 04_Clients (Top 5 INBOX + Label)
  • 05_Core_Tasks (Top 5 INBOX + Label)
  • 06_Calendar_Events (Label Only)
  • 07_Review_Delete (Label Only)
  • 08_Reference (Label Only)
  • 09_EERs >>> Extra Energy Req (Label Only)

Note: Put yourself at the TOP or this will never work.

My Entrepreneur Pyramid looks like this:

  • 00_Me (Label Only)
  • 01_Clients (Top 5 INBOX + Label)
  • 02_Employees (Top 5 INBOX + Label)
  • 03_Owners (Top 5 INBOX + Label)
  • 04_Suppliers (Top 5 INBOX + Label)
  • 05_Specialists (Top 5 INBOX + Label)
  • 06_Calendar_Events (Label Only)
  • 07_Review_Delete (Label Only)
  • 08_Reference (Label Only)
  • 09_EERs >>> Extra Energy Req (Label Only)

Day 7 (Fri): ALTER: Walk In Your NEW Workflow Process

Where Your Attention Goes, Your Time Goes!

  • There are constant attempts made daily, by systems and people, to get into the CAPTURE Framework that you pay attention to.
  • Email is about attention.
  • Social media is about attention.
  • Most conversations with colleagues and co-workers are about attention.
  • Text messages are about attention.
  • By creating an Email Filtering System, you control what gets your attention first.
  • If properly designed, the messages with the most value and reward, are at the top and in the front.

Pay close attention to everything, notice what no one else notices. Then you’ll know what no one else knows, and that’s always useful.

If you don’t pay appropriate attention to what has your attention, it will take more of your attention than it deserves.

Need Help Implementing This WORKFLOW Process?

Book Your Implementation Session (Link)

BONUS Content Related To This WORKFLOW Process (Login Required)

First Things First: ProGRESS Yourself

  • 01 – Build This INBOX System To Flow With You
  • 02 – Activate Your Influence
  • 03 – OKRs (Measure What Matters)
  • 04 – Right Next Action
  • 05 – Think Preeminently

Removing The Blocks: Prioritize Yourself

  • 11 – You Matter Too, So Act Like It!
  • 12 – Invest In Yourself First
  • 13 – Transform Through Your Circle of GIANTS

Pointers For Perspective: Preserve Yourself

  • 21 – Ten Minutes Per Hour
  • 22 – Top Five Inboxes First
  • 23 – Constantly Create New Filters and Labels

Small Shifts: Permit Yourself

  • 31 – Permit Yourself: It’s Your Email Account, Not Theirs!
  • 32 – Permit Yourself: It’s Your Productivity Goal, Not Theirs!
  • 33 – Permit Yourself: It’s Your Purpose And Vision, Not Theirs!

Mental Agility: Adjust Yourself

  • 41 – Adjust Yourself: New People
  • 42 – Adjust Yourself: New Environment
  • 43 – Adjust Yourself: New Tools

Insider Secrets: The 7 WORKFLOW and Well-Being Disrupters

  • 51 – Time for Task Completion and Asset Creation
  • 52 – Energy for Advocacy and Activism
  • 53 – Resources for Autonomy and Automation
  • 54 – Knowledge for Skillful Execution
  • 55 – Focus for Authority and Superiority
  • 56 – Help for Acceleration and Accountability
  • 57 – Structure for Consistency and Cooperation

In addition to the 7 Day Action Sequence, get INSTANT access to the BONUS Content listed above.

These Self reINVENTION Tips can help YOU pinpoint ways to refine your Distinct Value, giving YOU greater Personal Power, properly directed Focus, better OKRs and smarter Execution. OKRs stands for Objectives and Key Results.

Your membership also includes The WORKFLOW Process Rocket Report (delivered to your INBOX every Thursday).

Each report targets a specific Self reINVENTION Tip to help YOU…

  • Get results FASTER.
  • Simplify complex processes.
  • Reduce mental strain and emotional tension.
  • Systematize and Automate routine work.
  • Convert Technology into employees and…
  • Use resources you already have to save time, energy and other important resources.

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