I love a good email newsletter. Some of my personal favorites include those published by Austin Kleon, Seth Godin, Cedric Chin, Dave Pell, and Hiten Shaw. I subscribe to dozens of email newsletters like these because they’re a convenient way to get information about topics that I care about.
But for a lot of people, that convenience comes at a cost. Misplaced emails, decision fatigue, and a lot of wasted time is the price many pay for mismanaging a cluttered inbox. Unfortunately, newsletters are often a significant contributor to the daily drudgery of dealing with too many emails.
So how do we balance keeping the subscriptions we enjoy without sacrificing our sanity?
I suggest that you try using filters. Gmail’s filter settings let you automatically archive (skip the inbox) and tag each newsletter into it’s own category (there are similar settings found in Outlook and other popular email applications). You can create a filter rule based on the name of the sender, subject line, or keyword.
Smart email filters give you the freedom to subscribe to as many newsletters as your heart desires. Each one will be neatly filed away, safe from becoming lost in the shuffle, and available for you to read at your leisure. Most importantly, your newsletters will no longer pile up in your inbox where they can distract you from more important work-related emails.
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