I’ve lately been on a cleaning kick with my email inbox. I get a lot of newsletters and other materials that I end up deleting. So I decided I’d clean out my inbox, by unsubscribing myself from the various newsletters. And as I did all this work, I realized that a lot of the newsletters were not ones I’d signed up for, but instead ones someone else has decided to sign me up for, no doubt thinking that I would prefer to be bombarded with their spam than actually trying to get to know me.

The problem with email is that too many people will try and take up your time with their message, often without taking the time to verify if you really want to get their message. Even though its illegal to add people to an e-list without providing them the opportunity to opt-in, many business owners will still do it in the mistaken belief that adding you without your consent will somehow make you more inclined to buy their services and products. It rarely does, instead leading to irritation at having to deal with one more interruption.

My recommendation is that if you find yourself getting newsletters you didn’t sign up for, is to first open the email and find the unsubscribe button. Unsubscribe and then delete. That way you won’t be deleting the newsletter every time you get it. The key to managing your inbox is cutting down on the overall spam you’re getting so it doesn’t continue to flood your inbox with irrelevent information.