Last week, my siblings and I came together to clear out the home that we all grew up in, preparing to put it on the market. As children of the Great Depression, my parents threw nothing out. Every piece of rope, wire, nail or scrap metal had potential value in it. It took two dumpsters and seven of us an entire day to clear out the mountains of items that had accumulated in the attic and garage since my parents bought the house in 1970. Had my father not died of a heart attack, this surely would have killed him.

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The Energy Project offers individuals a science-based approach to fueling sustainable personal energy. Last week I listened in on one of their free webinars hosted by Tony Schwartz, co-author of The Power of Full-Engagement. During the call, Tony shared some key principles by which we can cultivate absorbed focus in the face of incessant distractions.

My daily routine is likely quite similar to yours. I schedule back-to-back meetings and find myself checking email and returning phone calls in between. But what I try and make time for every day, is one hour of physical movement outside. Lately, I’ve been averaging 70 mile-100 miles/week on my bike and the practice has given me some of my best ideas. If I don’t do this, I am often not in the “performance zone” and operating at my best.

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Yesterday I invited a friend of mine to dinner- a writer I adore and respect. But after speaking to her for twenty minutes what I saw was a bitter woman who was very disenchanted. “I have no skills and I feel like my life has been a waste. I haven’t accomplished anything worthwhile!” she confessed.

Yet she is talented and prolific. She has been a rising star in her literary circle, with several credits to her name. But she never achieved the “big break” she had hoped for. To top it off, the financial reward for her devotion to creative writing has been meager, in spite of her hard work and numerous accomplishments.

I have known many successful individuals like this who have also expressed similar sentiments into their middle years. They have completed some of their ambitions, but happiness continues to elude them. They feel that they have thrown away their time chasing after dreams when their peers seem to be otherwise “right on track” with higher ranks and salaries.

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Maybe there was a time when the boundaries between work and home life were clear, but I don’t think anyone can remember when it was. Now, with portable technology keeping us permanently tethered to the workplace, those lines are becoming increasingly blurred. And the cost to our mental and physical health can be enormous. (As highlighted in my April newsletter). At least once a week I will hear some version of the following statement: “My work situation is untenable. I just can’t go on like this.”

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Last Friday after turning on my Mac, I found over 175 e-mail messages waiting for me. Over time, I have developed my own system of dealing with the messages so that I don’t feel overwhelmed. But it takes constant work and vigilance to stay on top of the mail deluge. In 1999, Harvard Management ran an article setting forth “The Ten Commandments of E-MAIL.”

Below, I’ve summarized and/or updated some of these commandments which I believe still make sense to help control clutter and make e-mail work for us, vs. against us.

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