Make email your servant, not your master

Many dental nurses and practice managers know all too well that sinking feeling when you see there are huge numbers of emails waiting for your attention, or when you are searching for an important email among all of the rubbish and spam that arrives every day. In the same way, many of us have deleted something in error simply because we cannot ‘see the wood for the trees’. In this age of the ‘information super highway’ it is vital to have disciplines and protocols to ensure your e-communications are your servant and not your master.

The good news is that there are increasing numbers of reputable, free to use apps out there. It is just a case of finding time to identify what you need and learning how to use it. Research reveals that on average managers and admin workers spend up to 28% of their working week going through emails (McKinsey Global Institute, 2012). This is a significant amount of time, enough to make it worthwhile ring fencing some time to improve your email management protocols.