How about you?

Using GTD, I usually have zero items in my Inbox. However, today I have 10 all flagged for some sort of disposition. Technically, they shouldn't be there but in other folders. I just haven't put them there just yet.

I have a variety of accounts and tend to work to keep the inbox empty enough so what's in there will display with scrolling and with a bit of space left over.

My wife, otoh, has over 4k messages in her inbox. Different strokes.

Here is a link to a version of GTD (Getting Things Done) that is set up specifically in Outlook but the ideas would transfer to non-PC users. I like this idea. I have tried to do it but fail as much as I succeed.

http://www.hanselman.com/blog/GettingOrganizedWhileDrinkingFromTheOutlookFireHose.aspx

I receive approx. 150 - 200 emails a day (after application of the junk filter), so I have thousands stored in my inbox. I use Outlook's red flags to mark what I haven't dealt with yet. Every few weeks, I move everything without a red flag to a network folder designated by the month in which I received the email (e.g., I have a folder titled "March 2009"), because in my job its dangerous to delete anything.

Me = 1026, my husband = none.
I do sort them out every month or so.

As I write this 4877. But I deleted a whole stack this weekend as Outlook was crashing far too frequently.

Some wisdom on this one? --- Don't delete. You'll regret it.

Our IT guy was ranting the other day about running out of room to back up Outlook files. I tried to send them something with a 6mb attachment and it got rejected. I was flabbergasted. Email is a critical tool.

Since I'm a renegade, I'm on gmail and just set up my Outlook account for forward it all there. I don't have to file messages; I just hit "archive" and if I need them later, I google them.

If I had one piece of advice, it would be to rid yourself of Outlook bloatware and move to a true web-based email. Because I can access mine from anywhere, I've been able to work from several different countries without anyone knowing the difference. I can even get to it on my kid's iTouch if I need to.

7265 emails, 3721 unread. And I am constantly searching old emails. I'm sure there are tons I could get rid of, and if I'm bored every so often I delete a few pages or so. And I'm horrible about answering emails right away - I get a chance to read them, but I can't reply because I'm feeding the baby or something.

The other option isn't only delete. That's what folders are for ...

phil_style,

Unfortunately e-mail is not the least important form of communication. It is almost the only form these days at the University and in the larger community. We are close to paperless. I interact with journals, meetings, administration, funding agencies, colleagues, get requests for review, letters of recommendation (sent and received), notification of funding, notification of policy, invitations to speak,... all via e-mail - exclusively.

Folders, people. Especially if you're stuck with Outlook, like I am for work. Folders, and then folders within folders. It's all there if you need it. I also recommend Google Desktop, so you can search your own stuff effectively.

For my Gmail personal account, I tag stuff that matters and archive it after it goes past the 50 that show up on one page. Everything else (Facebook reminders, spam, etc) gets deleted. I'm still only using 1% of the storage. Plus they have that new autopilot feature ;)

Facebook is overtaking email as the primary means of communication for many people. It's growing at a million people every two days... I now spend as much time checking Facebook as I do checking email.

I'm even thinking of discontinuing our church e-news to put those resources on Facebook. It's much more interactive, and I can be a daily part of people's lives without "spamming" them. Not to mention that we have more FB friends than we do email subscribers.

That being said, it's awful hard to stop any kind of communication once it gets going.