Why was I wasting my time on these things? Sure it only takes a second to delete something, but when I'm constantly clearing out my inbox of stuff I don't want, those seconds start to add up. I thought to myself, “Why am I getting emails from Ann Taylor Loft? I like that store, but I don't need encouragement to spend money” or “Why am I getting this email from a gas company in New York when I don't even live there anymore?” Instead of deleting I started clicking “unsubscribe.” I still get a good bit of newsletters, but now everything I get is something I actually want – and even more important, I actually read. Sometimes I archive the emails/newsletters to read later (see this post about how to have a zen and minimalist inbox) but the difference is I'm not getting emails I just delete or ignore the majority of the time. For example, I donate regularly to the ASPCA and The Elephant Sanctuary, and I always will, but I never read their newsletters. So even though I love these organizations, it made no sense to stay subscribed. I also know it costs money to send email newsletters, and even if if only costs them $0.03 to send it to me, that's a waste – especially if I think about how many people like me they might have on their list. I still get a lot of mail – mail from you, customer service issues from getmealplans.com, mail from my family and friends, and a good bit of mail from newsletters and blogs I still subscribe to (McDougall, KISSmetrics, Bethenny Frankel, to name a few) but it's everything I want and nothing that I delete. I am loving my minimalist inbox.Last week I encouraged everyone to go on a news diet. To piggy back on that, I'm going to suggest taking a news diet in your inbox, too. Recently I realized my inbox was being overrun by advertisements and newsletters that I didn't even remember subscribing to. Newsletters I just deleted (without opening) the majority of the time.Why was I wasting my time on these things? Sure it only takes a second to delete something, but when I'm constantly clearing out my inbox of stuff I don't want, those seconds start to add up. I thought to myself, “Why am I getting emails from Ann Taylor Loft? I like that store, but I don't need encouragement to spend money” or “Why am I getting this email from a gas company in New York when I don't even live there anymore?” Instead of deleting I started clicking “unsubscribe.” I still get a good bit of newsletters, but now everything I get is something I actually want – and even more important, I actually read. Sometimes I archive the emails/newsletters to read later (see this post about how to have a zen and minimalist inbox) but the difference is I'm not getting emails I just delete or ignore the majority of the time. For example, I donate regularly to the ASPCA and The Elephant Sanctuary, and I always will, but I never read their newsletters. So even though I love these organizations, it made no sense to stay subscribed. I also know it costs money to send email newsletters, and even if if only costs them $0.03 to send it to me, that's a waste – especially if I think about how many people like me they might have on their list. I still get a lot of mail – mail from you, customer service issues from getmealplans.com, mail from my family and friends, and a good bit of mail from newsletters and blogs I still subscribe to (McDougall, KISSmetrics, Bethenny Frankel, to name a few) but it's everything I want and nothing that I delete. I am loving my minimalist inbox.
Why was I wasting my time on these things? Sure it only takes a second to delete something, but when I'm constantly clearing out my inbox of stuff I don't want, those seconds start to add up. I thought to myself, “Why am I getting emails from Ann Taylor Loft? I like that store, but I don't need encouragement to spend money” or “Why am I getting this email from a gas company in New York when I don't even live there anymore?” Instead of deleting I started clicking “unsubscribe.” I still get a good bit of newsletters, but now everything I get is something I actually want – and even more important, I actually read. Sometimes I archive the emails/newsletters to read later (see this post about how to have a zen and minimalist inbox) but the difference is I'm not getting emails I just delete or ignore the majority of the time. For example, I donate regularly to the ASPCA and The Elephant Sanctuary, and I always will, but I never read their newsletters. So even though I love these organizations, it made no sense to stay subscribed. I also know it costs money to send email newsletters, and even if if only costs them $0.03 to send it to me, that's a waste – especially if I think about how many people like me they might have on their list. I still get a lot of mail – mail from you, customer service issues from getmealplans.com, mail from my family and friends, and a good bit of mail from newsletters and blogs I still subscribe to (McDougall, KISSmetrics, Bethenny Frankel, to name a few) but it's everything I want and nothing that I delete. I am loving my minimalist inbox.
