Balancing the load

“Objects in the mirror are closer than they appear” – a safety warning on side mirrors of motor vehicles.

“Makarand, I get close to a thousand emails every day. I want to answer every mail, but it is overwhelming. Any tips?” In an informal conversation, Ramesh was sharing his experience in the new job. He had recently joined us from a relatively small organization.

Responding to email can be tiring, and takes away a significant amount of your time. If not done well it can lead to delays and create a lot of trouble.

“No doubt you get many emails, but are they worth reading? I get a lot of junk, advertisements, invitations to events, greetings, reminders, social media updates, and so on.”

“After cleaning, respond to messages, where others are waiting on you. Your quick response can save someone a day of effort.”

“Acknowledge the ones where you need more time so that the sender will not bother you with more follow-ups.”

“Sometimes someone in your team can provide a better answer. Pass on those to others right away.”

Many times we get tired, just looking at the numbers, however, a careful evaluation will reveal the real count.

How do you handle overwhelming questions?