Clear out the Datasmog

• Making clear the distinctions between "answering times" and work-production times.
• Programming a mailbox manager system in the computer to delete messages after 30 days.
• Creating uninterrupted stretches of time for concentrated, focused work. Finishing a task without interruption is the biggest time/energy saver and anxiety reducer of all.
• Refraining from doing personal work at the office and vice versa.
• Working at the desk for an hour each morning before reading e-mail.
• Not copying everyone in a group on messages that only one person needs to respond to.
• Turning off auditory indicators (pings and dings) that announce messages accumulating on the phone or e-mail.
• Turning off communication devices in work meetings.

Technostress Reduction

• Take control over what's in your control and don't try to control what isn't.
• Create boundaries between work and personal life.
• Decide what's meaningful and make time for it, whether at work or away from work.

From: Psychotherapy Networker, March/April 2008.