From the course: Time Management Fundamentals

Setting up an inbox gathering point

From the course: Time Management Fundamentals

Setting up an inbox gathering point

“

- Your inbox is a powerful tool for keeping your workspace organized. Choose one large, physical inbox to be the gathering point for all unprocessed, physical items. Any unresolved object or paper should be tossed into this inbox. Ideally, the inbox will sit on your desk or next to your workspace. As you go through your day, if you see anything out of place, papers, tools, magazines, pick them up and put them in the inbox rather than putting them away. Then at a scheduled time, you'll clear out that inbox using a simple and easy system I'll share with you later in the course. This will help you break a common and unproductive habit. Many people allow clutter to gradually pile up in different places. The piles get larger until they can't take it anymore. And then in a burst of frustration, they spend hours putting everything away. I call it whirlwind organization, and it wastes time. We're going to replace that with a weekly habit. Now how big should your inbox be? There's no right or wrong here, but it should probably be bigger than you think, large enough to never get to the point of overflowing. If you only deal with a few papers each week, maybe a deep, letter-size box is enough. But if you deal with lots of large, physical items, like product samples at an interior design company, you may need a large, plastic storage container. When in doubt, go bigger than you think you need. This will make it easier to put unprocessed items in the inbox rather than letting them gather in unapproved areas. Take a moment and decide what inbox you'll use. If you don't have it yet, go get it. This small step begins your journey of taking control of your workspace.

Contents