E-mail Addiction

Hi, my name is Amir and I’m an e-mail addict. Well, actually I’m a former addict. I was deeply entrenched in e-mail addiction – checking e-mails countless times throughout the day – clicking on Outlook’s Send/Receive button every few minutes, anxiously looking for new incoming mail. Those who sent me e-mails came to expect a quick response, and were even amazed at how quickly I got back to them.

My Blackberry kept me plugged in even when I left the office. I’d check it several times during lunch, not wanting to miss any important e-mails. The same pattern would continue in the evening. My family came to expect it and tolerated it, but I know my wife hated it – my mind was on work all the time. Not on any specific work or project, but on e-mails in general. These e-mails were often unimportant and could’ve waited until the next work day, but I felt the compulsion to always know what lay in my Inbox.

Then, one day a few months ago, I realized it – I was addicted to e-mail! My entire workday revolved around e-mails – it was a disorganized mess, with no real focus or purpose. At the end of each workday, I left the office feeling like I had worked many hard hours, but with an empty feeling wondering what I had really accomplished.

So I wondered – what would happen if I didn’t check my e-mail continually every few minutes? What would happen if I didn’t check my e-mail at night? Would my clients revolt? Would I lose business? So I set out with an experiment – for the next week, I resolved to check e-mails only three times a day – once in the morning when I arrived to the office it at 9:00 am, again at noon, and finally at 4:30pm for any late afternoon e-mails. Then, I would not check it at all the entire evening at home, until I returned to work the following morning.

The first day, I was anxious – I felt the need to check my e-mails, but forced myself to abstain. The time away from e-mail checking allowed me to plan and organize, and I was amazed at how much I accomplished, and how much “real” work I got done. At noon, and again at 4:30pm, the e-mails came flooding in. I replied to them, and returned to the work at hand.

When I left the office that day, I was a bit nervous about the idea of not checking e-mails all evening, but deep down I knew that any e-mail that came in during that time could wait until the next day. As I spent time with my family that evening, I actually enjoyed my freedom from work, and had the most relaxing evening in a long time. That week, I continued the same pattern, and was amazed at the results. I turned off e-mails on my Blackberry, and when I went out for lunch – I was truly free to enjoy my lunch time. Ignorance was bliss – those damn e-mails could wait an hour!

Here’s what I realized – clients actually didn’t ever expect a reply within minutes, and most issues could wait a few hours or even the next day for a response. If a client had an urgent matter, they would simply call if their e-mail wasn’t answered. There was almost no issue that would arise that would really need my attention during lunch, on evenings or weekends. It can wait!

Some of my colleagues, friends, and clients needed to get used to my new e-mail protocol, though. Many of them are e-mail addicts themselves, and I had to train them to understand that their e-mails wouldn’t get an immediate response. It took some time – some would call and ask, “Did you get my e-mail? I didn’t hear back from you.” To which I politely explained, “I only check my e-mails a few times a day. I’m sure it’s there – if not, I will let you know.” I had to retrain them – it was that simple.

So I write to you now as a recovering addict, who feels as though he has been reborn – I have been released from the self-induced bondage of e-mail slavery! I’m free!