Get Your Students Hired
i found this very interesting, how many of us constantly check our mail our phones, text messages, because we think we are being more efficient with our time and attending to situations right away? its interesting to note, it might be the exact opposite... we spend so much time doing this we fail to see the big picture... it really in essence is slowing us down and taking away from other important tasks...iam glad i have learned this , now.. to put it into practice.
Tina, You are not alone. In the information age, sometimes we are overwhelmed with the amount of input coming in. When this happens, it's human to miss a few things. I recommend slowing down when checking email and highlighting mail that is important with special flags or colors. I also recommend reconfiguring your junkmail settings so any noise is filtered out quickly.
Dr. Melissa Read
Sometimes I find there is too much information. Sometimes I have missed an important email because I simply avoided checking email. It's a great tool, sometimes a real " time bandit."
William, That makes a lot of sense. Sometimes digital can really disrupt our lives. It gives us great power when we need it but can be quite distracting. Powering down and giving yourself a break can help you focus on other things.
Dr. Melissa Read
I think that all the access we have can really tie you up. I have tried to only check on line messages twice a day and respond only if it is a high prioty. That way I am not spending too much time on clerk duties.
I too get almost paranoid about missing something important and find myself checking my email very often-about 10 times a day. This in itself can be a time waster.
To many people check there email and text messages all the day long, like every 10 minutes. Unless you are expecting a message that is very important what a waste of time. I agree that once every two to three hours would be a good way to save time and energy. Don’t get me wrong, staying in touch is very important.
Yes I check my emails throughout the day. I juggle three classes and I conduct clinical visits so I feel compelled to immediately responsed to my clinical sites to provide good customer service. I received emails directly to work phone and does work out great if I'm waiting to speak to a client. However, given how we are tied to emails, I strongly feel students feel like we don't respond fast enough. My policy is within 2 business days. Majority of the time I respond within the same day. Our society created the quick responses. Yes, this is something I need to change.
When I check my e-mails I devoted uninterupted time for this. Because the response is instant and unretrivable, I attempt to note e-mails and respond as though I am talking with the Queen of England then I do not have to worry later that I may have been too casual in my response. Over politeness saves stress from occurring.
i agree checking the e-mail to much is a time waster. i use to check it 5 to 10 times a day now i check when i get to work. just before lunch and at the end of the day and i find i get more done in the day.
I check my emails more regularly since I took over a management job. Before, when I had more instructional time in the classroom I checked it once or twice a day. I need to get back to set times of checking it becaue it really can be a time waster to check everytime it digs showing a new email.
Magdy, Feel free to adopt as many ideas as you like from this course and fellow students. Yes, checking email a few times a day can significantly improve your work life and focus as an instructor.
Dr. Melissa Read
This is an amazing idea. I think I will steal this and tell my students I will check my email twice a day and to email me before those times if they expect a reply.
Amanda, Yes, having set times for checking email can work great for two reasons. First, this method helps us stay on top of important emails. Second however, this method prevents us from checking too much and creating expectations from others that we'll always be on to respond immediately.
Dr. Melissa Read
i think that is a great idea to have certain check times for email, we have a reminder/pop up system on our admin side of the computers on campus - but when I was an adjunct i would have to check them at home or in between classes when i could fit it in but atleast daily.
I do check my emails when I first come in because this is a way my student can communicate that they will be missing class. When in class all day I do not check email until the end of the day. When I am teaching business class I have to check my emails more often because that is the way the students send in work that needs to be graded.
I have a set time that I check all emails and this is usually one time a day do that I can respond to all.
I will admit that I check my email several times throughout the day. I get paranoid that if I don't check it regularly, that I will miss something vitally important. But I do feel like our campus emphasizes checking email often every day. We have a student portal that we use to communicate with the students. However, maybe by learning these new pieces of advice, I can learn to "scale it down" so I don't feel so paranpid and overwhelmed.