#i was zoning out while having easter dinner and caught myself doing it

[leslutdepointedulac]

Headcanon:

Louis has a tendency to scratch/drag his nails on the palm of his hand any time he gets anxious, stressed or overwhelmed/overstimulated. It's a habit he's had since childhood as a way to deal with emotionally distressing situations without drawing too much attention to himself. He doesn't realise he's doing it half the time. If there's a gathering of some kind at the chateau and Louis can't avoid going to it, he gets overwhelmed and Lestat usually ends up taking his hand while still talking to whoever, to stop him from scratching himself.

[emilyjunk]

could u write a bemily fic where they’re stuck in an elevator?

Read below or on AO3!!

Emily couldn’t stop thinking aboutthat kiss.

She was familiar with obsession.She was the kind of person who fell in love with a song and listened to it onrepeat for three weeks straight. The type of person who would read a book orwatch a show and find herself constantly thinking back on it. She’d be up until4am scouring the internet for fan theories and fanfictions and Easter eggs.

Yes, Emily was wholeheartedlyfamiliar with obsession.

Her preoccupation with that kiss,though? On a whole new level.

She’d find herself zoning out whenshe was supposed to be doing something else, her brain replaying that magicalmoment on repeat. She’d accidentally drift off in class, analyzing everyinteraction with Beca she’d ever had. She’d fall asleep fantasizing aboutkissing Beca again, letting it lead her into Beca-filled dreams.

All this obsessing was making hera little crazy, but what was she to do? She’d tried to talk to Becaabout it, but Beca kept avoiding her.

Emily was straight up obsessed…but Beca? Beca was ghosting. 

She’d tried everything. She’dtried to talk to Beca after rehearsals, but Beca, who never ran anywhere unlessshe was being absolutely forced to, literally sprinted out of the roomthe second Emily glanced in her direction. She wouldn’t come within a few feetof Emily, eat in the same room, or even look her in the eyes, which was makingtheir Worlds performance really awkward. Emily had even crept up to the loftwhen she knew Fat Amy was out, but Beca hadn’t been there, or if she had, she’dbeen hiding. 

Emily was starting to think thatshe wouldn’t put it past Beca to hide under the bed when she heard Emilycreaking up the stairs.

It was kind of making her mad,because like, who kisses a person and then just… completely ignores theirexistence? Really, Beca? Like who does that?

But Emily doesn’t really wanna bemad at Beca. What she wants is to kiss Beca. Again. And again. Andagain.

Since Beca wouldn’t talk to her,though, Emily was just settling for this all-consuming obsession.

She didn’t really know what elseto do.

//

Stuck in an elevator.

Apparently that was the solutionto Emily’s problem. All she had to do was get them stuck in an elevator. Notthat she’d meant to do it. In fact, it wasn’t even her fault. But thatelevator sure did have good timing.

See, they’d been down at the hotelrestaurant in Copenhagen having dinner on their first night there, when Becahad suddenly frowned and pushed up from the table just as their drinks came.“Forgot my phone in the room, be right back.”

Emily, seeing a goldenopportunity, decided to follow. “GOTTA PEE!” She exclaimed, probably too loudlyand publicly, but hey, she was in a hurry!

She sped out of the restaurantafter Beca, seeing her turn the corner toward the elevator bay. She rushedafter her, catching up just in time to slip through the sliding doors as theyclosed.

“Beca.”

Beca gaped at her. “How did you --Legacy, what are you doing?”

“I’m chasing after you,obviously!” 

The doors shut before Beca had achance to do anything about it, and the elevator started to rise.

“I…” Beca stared, her back upagainst the opposite wall of the elevator. She was in dark jeans and a purpleflannel, an old but comfy looking one, and Emily thought she looked unreallygorgeous.

“Can we talk?”

Beca shook her head in her denial.“About what?”

Emily rolled her eyes, because,like, nobody is that thick. “You know about what! You’ve been avoiding me sinceyou kissed me last week!”

“Have I?” Beca frowned. “No, that…that doesn’t sound like me.”

“Yes, it does.” Emily crossed herarms, pouting. “Can’t we just talk about it. If it didn’t mean anything,that’s fine, but like, I don’t think we should just avoid it.”

“I’m… now’s not really… I mean,we’re almost at our floor, and --”

It was then that the elevatordinged, and Beca turned toward the doors, expecting them to open.

They just… never did. 

They stayed forcibly, unmovablyshut.

“Um.” Beca frowned. Pushed the opendoor button. “Wait.” Emily furrowed her eyebrows, reaching around Beca topush the button herself. Beca scoffed. “Really?”

Emily giggled nervously. “Justchecking.”

Beca jammed the button a few moretimes, but nothing happened. “Motherfucker.”

“Are we stuck?”

“I think so.” Beca finally lookedat her. “Can you call Chloe and tell her to tell the front desk? My phone’supstairs.”

Emily called Chloe and they waitedwhile the Bellas all erupted into laughter at their expense before going to thefront desk. Chloe assured them they were working on it and to stay on the linefor updates.

Emily hung up.

“Hey! She said to stay on the linefor updates!”

Emily raised an eyebrow at Beca’sflabbergasted expression. “No, I think we should have some time to speak inprivate. Since we’re stuck in here anyway.”

Beca stared at her for a longmoment, then slid down the elevator wall and onto the floor. Emily sat downacross from her, her back against the opposite wall. They looked at each other.

Emily thought Beca’s face was astone wall, flat and blank. 

“So…”

Beca curled her legs up to herchest, tapping her hands on her knees. “So…”

“You kissed me.”

Beca’s eyes skittered away, herstone wall cracking the tiniest amount. “Yeah. I guess I did.”

“You’ve been avoiding me for daysand acting like a crazy person.”

Beca grimaced. “Avoiding isa… strong word.”

Emily huffed. “Avoiding,Beca.”

“Okay, fine.” Beca sighed, herhead falling back against the elevator wall. “I’m sorry. For avoiding you. I’mjust not good at this stuff. Obviously.”

“That’s okay,” Emily saidpatiently. “You don’t have to be good at it. But normally when people kissother people, they don’t just run away and not say anything about it. Usuallypeople talk about their feelings.”

“No, see,” Beca sat up straighter.“If that were the case, then feelings would be called ‘talkings’.”

Emily blinked as she took that in.Then she snorted. “Stop.”

Beca smiled at her. “I’m sorry.”

“For the kiss? Because I’m not.”

“You’re not?”

Emily shook her head. “No. Thatwas… the best kiss I’ve ever had. My head was totally spinning. I heard thechorus of like, twelve new love songs in my head. They’re gonna be total bops.”

“I…” Beca gave her a strange look,lips ticking up in a half-smile. “Okay…”

“It was like one of those kissesthat only happens in movies, you know? Like a fairytale because it’s just thatgood.” Beca’s eyes crinkled when she laughed and Emily’s heart flipped. Theystared at each other again, Beca’s face softening the longer Emily looked ather. She wanted to reach out and hold Beca’s hand, but the elevator was just alittle too big and Beca just a little too far away. Finally, she sighed. “Ijust don’t get why.”

Beca paused. Then she shrugged.“I…” She fidgeted. Flattened her legs back against the ground, her foot justinches from Emily’s. “Something happened to me.”

Emily frowned. “What do you mean?Something bad?”

“No,” Beca was quick to say. “Notsomething bad.” She looked down at her lap. “When we were at the retreat andyou looked at me, and we all were singing… I just…” She gestured to herselfabstractly. “And then we were at Residual and like, vibing, you know?And something happened, and I… thought differently. I had a sensation, like, itcould be like that all the time. Like we’d kick ass together. And Ithought maybe… but.” She shrugged, at a loss for words. “I don’t know.”

“You thought… maybe… me and you?”Emily’s heart dropped into her stomach. “Together?”

“Yeah,” Beca said, her voicebarely above a whisper. “And I think I just… wasn’t prepared for how much thatwas gonna hit me and I panicked. You know, in the closet. But I didn’t want youto think it wasn’t because I didn’t want to. It’s because I reallywanted to, but like…” She shrugged again. “I just don’t know what I’m doing.I’m a total failure at this stuff, dude. And now it’s like…” Beca groaned, herfingers coming up to pinch at her nose. “Now we’re stuck in this fuckingelevator and I can’t even explain myself.”

Emily’s insides felt like mush andshe chuckled. “Well, that’s all you had to say. You didn’t have to say it well,but you didn’t have to go around saying nothing.”

“Okay, well easy for you to say.You’re all…” Beca gestured at her. “You’re whole self. And I’m like…” Shegestured to herself. “Me. Unfortunately.”

“Well, I like you, thank you verymuch, so....” Emily tapped Beca’s foot with her own. “What now?”

“What now?”

Emily nodded. “Mhmm. So, like.Where do we go from here?”

“Oh.” Beca looked truly puzzled.“I… didn’t really think past this point. I couldn’t even think up to thispoint, to be honest.”

Emily grinned. “Well, I’vedefinitely thought past this point.”

Beca’s mouth fell open. “I… okay.”She gave Emily a strange look. “What… um… What did you think, then?”

“Me and you, on a date,” Emilybegan, a smile in her voice. “And me and you making music together, like allthe time. And… me and you…” Emily hummed, crawling the few feet between them soshe was up in Beca’s space. Beca’s eyes zeroed in on hers. “Doing this,” Emilyfinished. Then she leaned down and pressed her lips to Beca’s. 

Beca’s breath got caught betweenthem and she exhaled sharply against Emily’s lips. Her hand settled on Emily’scheek and she tilted her neck up more, pulling Emily closer. It was soft,softer than that first hallway kiss but still electrifying. Emily felt itagain, those fireworks in her stomach, that head-spinning rush. It wasintoxicating. Phenomenal.

What soulmates are made of.

She pulled back slightly, but Becaheld her there, her hand still on Emily’s cheek. 

“Um,” Beca murmured. “Whoa.”

“Good whoa?”

“Yeah. Great whoa. Amazing whoa.Totes awes whoa. Oh… wait, no, I sound like Chloe, ew.”

Emily smiled and their lipsbrushed together again. “Aca-whoa?”

“Stop,” but Beca laughed, thesound vibrating against Emily’s lips. 

Emily hummed happily. “So we good?No more avoiding?”

“Alright. I guess not.” She couldfeel Beca’s eye roll. “Can’t do much avoiding in this elevator anyway, so wemight as well… just…” Beca tugged her closer again, connecting their lips.

Emly laughed. “Seven minutes inHelevator.”

Beca pulled back again to grimaceat her. “What?”

“Like Seven Minutes in Heaven inan elevator.”

“It sounds like Hell when youcombine those. Like, it sounds bad, dude.”

“Moving on,” Emily laughed. Shesettled between Beca’s legs, her hand on the elevator wall, and leaned backdown.

Beca’s hands circled around herneck as Emily slid their lips together, soft and curious. Her whole body wastingly. She tilted her head to deepen the kiss, her tongue slipping into Beca’smouth. Beca exhaled, adjusting under Emily, her fingers crawling down Emily’sneck, to her shoulder, her side, her waist. They brushed under her shirt, warmand soft against Emily’s skin.

Emily gasped and --

The sound was swallowed by thesharp ding of the elevator as the doors slid open. Emily’s whole bodyjolted, startled, her head whipping around to watch as the doors opened widerand wider, revealing Bella after Bella standing there, one-by-one.

They all stared at each other asthey took in the scene, and as far as Emily could tell, the mouth of everyBella might as well have been on the floor. 

“Oh. My. God?” Stacie gaped.

“What the fuck?” Cynthia Roselooked them up and down.

Emily immediately rolled off ofBeca. “Um.”

Beca stood up, pulling Emily withher. “Cool, yeah, so this is happening, okay, and if any of you make a big dealof this or make either of us feel any kind of mortification, I will still putlaxatives in all of your fucking food. So, just… shut up.” 

Then she grabbed Emily’s hand andmarched straight out of the elevator and down the hall, dragging Emily behindher. 

[and-original-post]

Dallas Winston (Part 3) It Will Rain

Dally’s pov

The next week and half went something like this: I’d go to the Curtis house where I knew Yn was staying. Knock on the door and wait. Darry would answer it. I’d ask to see her, he’d say no. I would be able to see her either walking around behind him or sitting on the couch with red puffy eyes from crying.

But today was different.

I knocked on the door ready for the same transaction as the days before.

“Can I please talk to her?” I’d pleaded.

“No. How many times do I need to tell you that she doesn’t want to spea-“ He was cut offf.

“Let me talk to him for a minute.” Her voice was so quiet and soft.

He stoped for a moment and looked at her “Okay, we’re right here if you need us.” Darry said before stepping aside to let her take his original position in the door way.

“What do you want?” She said slightly hostile, I don’t blame her.

“Come back. I messed up. It didn’t mean anything I promise. Please come back.” I pleaded with her.

“How many times did it happen?” She asked.

“What?”

“How many times did you and her get together? Buck said it looks like she’s done this a few times before. So how many times did it happen?” She asked as tears formed in her eyes but didn’t fall.

“It was one time I swear. She’s always leading guys up there to hook up, but it was the first time she ever got me up there. Sure she’s tried before but I always pushed her away.” I explained.

“What was different this time then?” She snapped.

“I was pretty drunk. I was stressed about our anniversary and I couldn’t help myself I kept drinking.” I explained further.

“So you’re blaming our relationship for you cheating? That’s real rich Dallas.” She said turning and walking back inside. The screen door snapped shut behind her.

“Wait Yn!” I said and she hesitated before looking back to me.

“Please don’t leave me.” I said.

She shook her head, “I didn’t leave you Dally, you left me.” She shut the storm door forcefully, leaving me alone.

~If you ever leave me baby,

Leave some morphine at my door

'Cause it would take a whole lot of medication

To realize what we used to have,

We don't have it anymore.~

I walked back to my room at Buck’s place completely numb. We were over. Three years of my life was just thrown out by my own doing. I didn’t know what to do so I just went straight to my bed and laid down.

I don’t know how to process this all. The past three years of my life have been with Yn, and now just to have her gone, I don’t remember my life before her even. The worst part is she’s not even really gone, she’s only a couple miles away if that, yet she seems so far away.

~ There's no religion that could save me

No matter how long my knees are on the floor

Ooh so keep in mind all the sacrifices I'm makin'

Will keep you by my side

Will keep you from walkin' out the door.

'Cause there'll be no sunlight

If I lose you, baby

There'll be no clear skies

If I lose you, baby

Just like the clouds

My eyes will do the same, if you walk away

Everyday it will rain~

I eventually ended up just falling asleep. When I woke up that next morning it was pouring down rain. I got up from my bed and as I did I bumped the bedside table. A pice of paper fell of it. When I picked it up I was brought to my knees. It was the letter Yn had written me. The picture from the ultrasound was still with it. In that moment I made decision that I had never really made on my own. I decided to pray. I’ve never really been super religious, Yn was more religious than me but not a whole lot more. We’d go to church on Easter Sunday and for Christmas. Anytime we had an important dinner at the Curtis house we’d all pray before we ate, just little things like. The only other time I’d seen Yn pray was when her aunt died. Her aunt wasn’t even really related to her in any real way. She just found Yn living on the streets of New York and took her under her wing and showed her how life on the street works. Her name was Elaine, I only met her a few times while me and Yn were together. She reminded me a lot of Yn, and I could tell that’s where she got her attitude from. She ended up getting really sick about a year after me and Yn first got together. Then she kept getting worse. She died before our second year anniversary. When Yn got a phone call from the hospital her whole world fell apart. She locked herself in our room. When I was finally able to pick the lock I found her on her knees and face down on the mattress. I could here her mumbling, “Please, God, I’d give anything to have her back, please.” I didn’t really know what to do so I just held her as she cried and eventually fell asleep.

This felt just like that. I would sacrifice anything to have her back by my side. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes before I began, “Look man, I don’t really know how this whole thing really should go but I’m doing my best. I know I messed up here, I know it’s all my fault but please give me a second chance, this is so much more than just a relationship, it’s a family that I messed up. I need to fix this but I can’t, not on my own, that’s why I’m asking you. Please, I’d give up anything, or do anything to have her back. I’d even walk freely into the slammer if it meant she’d be waiting for me when I got out. Please. Please.”

I got up and sat at the desk Yn had pushed up against the window. I watched as the rain poured from the sky. Usually me and Yn would just lay in bed on days like this but I can’t do that any more.

~I'll never be your mother's favorite

Your daddy can't even look me in the eye

Ooh if I was in their shoes, I'd be doing the same thing

Sayin there goes my little girl

Walkin' with that troublesome guy

But they're just afraid of something they can't understand

Ooh but little darlin' watch me change their minds

Yea for you I'll try I'll try I'll try I'll try

I'll pick up these broken pieces 'til I'm bleeding

If that'll make you mine~

I know that I am not gang’s favorite right now. I don’t blame. I hurt Yn, the one we all care so much for. We were one big family and if any one messed with our family we’d make sure they learned their lesson. If it was any other guy who did this to Yn, I’d be with the gang protecting her and not letting him anywhere near her. But now I’m the one who’s getting a lesson. A lesson on how a single stupid decision can screw up everything you’ve ever cared about.

I don’t how but I need to prove that I am sorry about what I did. I need Yn in my life. It’s up to me to fix this, no matter how much it’ll hurt me it’ll be nothing compared to what Yn has had to go through.

I eventually got up and went back to bed. I didn’t even bother to eat anything. The next morning I woke up and it was still raining. It seemed to be heavier than it was the day before. Once again, I stayed locked in my room again. Then the same thing the next day when it was still raining. I didn’t even know Tulsa could get so much rain. Buck eventually started to worry about me and made me eat something.

~ Don't you say, goodbye

Don't you say, goodbye

I'll pick up these broken pieces 'til I'm bleeding

If that'll make it right

'Cause there'll be no sunlight

If I lose you, baby

There'll be no clear skies

If I lose you, baby

Just like the clouds

My eyes will do the same, if you walk away

Everyday it will rain~

While laying in bed for the fourth day, I heard the phone ring down stairs over the sound of the rain and then it stop. Either Buck answered it, or he let the machine get it. I grabbed the ultrasound picture and just stared at it. Man, this kid wasn’t even here and it’s already gone through so much. I was so caught up in my own thoughts I didn’t notice that I had started to cry. I zoned out just looking the picture of my and Yn baby.

It was late when I finally came to my senses. I looked out the window and saw it had finally stopped raining. On one hand that was good but I was honestly sad because now I had no one to cry along with. I also saw a truck parked outside that wasn’t mine or Buck’s. I didn’t think he was having a party tonight. No one was on the car so they must be inside already. I walked down the stairs and could hear Buck talking to some one, it sounded like Darry. I crept down the stairs where I could hear the conversation fairly clearly but couldn’t really see them. I could just see the side Darry but that’s all.

“Thanks man, we appreciate it. This was really taking a toll on her and the rest of the boys.” Darry said, he had to of been talking about Yn.

“It’s no problem, we both know how hot headed the two of them can be.” Buck said.

“Hey, that’s rude!” A third voice interjected, it was Yn.

“No kid, the word you’re looking for is true, not rude.” Darry said, I could tell he had that look on his face that he always has when he picks on Pony or Yn.

“Doesn’t mean you have to say it.” She said back. They all laughed for a moment before awkward silence set in. I almost used this moment to make myself known, but Buck started talking before I could.

“You know, Dally ain’t to hot right now. I made him eat something this morning but even that was a battle, he stays locked up in his room. And I never tell him this, but these walls here are thin and I’ve heard him crying, even over that rain we were getting.” Buck said. I could tell he was worried.

I always turn to being tough when I’m in a situation I don’t like, and that’s exactly what I did. I walked down the rest of the steps and into the room they were all in.

“So you heard me crying?” I said trying to stair daggers at Buck.

“You don’t look so tough with red puffy eyes, Dal.” Yn voice made me turn to her and my face fell.

I could tell she’s spent her past few days similar to how I spent mine. My eyes started to water and I couldn’t even help the tears that began to fall. Yn stepped closer to me and wiped my eyes saying, “Stop crying,” then she wrapped her arms around my neck, “it’s not tuff.” She finished, her comment made me laugh a little as I hugged her.

“Please don’t go.” I whispered in her ear.

“I’m not, Buck told us everything I needed to know. I’m sorry I over reacted.” She said pulling back.

I held onto her hips and shook my head, “No, you have nothing to apologize for. You didn’t do anything wrong, it was me I should have never done that. And I swear to you, I’ll never do it again.”

“Okay. I’m going to hold you to that, because now this is so much bigger than us two.” She said smiling at the mention of our baby which caused me to do the same. Darry also have a slight smile before showing himself out while Buck stood there confused.

“Let’s go upstairs.” I said and she nodded then allowed me to lead her up.

We got to our room and sat on the bed. We talked about anything and everything, just like nothing had ever happened. That’s what I loved about us, even when we have a huge fall out like this, we’re able to bounce back so quickly.

“I really thought the rain was never going to stop.” I said as we got ready for bed. She laughed then said, “The universe was just mocking how you felt. Because when I’m not here you’re just like a rain cloud.” She teased. I rolled my eyes and laughed as we laid down. “Yeah, sure. Good night doll, love you.” I said and kissed her good night. “Good night, Dal.”

[dorothydelgadillo]

9 Ways to Manage Your Inbox Instead of Letting Your Emails Manage You

American office workers are spending an average of 6.5 hours per day responding to and generating email. And according to Verizon, 90 percent of Americans bring their smartphones to the bathroom.

I had big goals for a recent precious Saturday. Weeks ago, I sent my husband a calendar invite that read “Laurie Writing Day.” He graciously accepted, and when I left the house he and our two boys were hammering away (literally) at their latest home improvement project.

I arrived at our town library to find my favorite table in the quiet room empty and waiting for me. Score! I was free. And fired up. Yet with one rookie mistake, I nearly sabotaged my entire writing day trying to clear some headspace before focusing on my creative project. I stupidly opened my email. Three hours later, I was deep in the rabbit hole yet still only halfway through several hundred work emails.

As a working mother, I spend too many days waking up at 5:00 a.m. already feeling like there aren’t enough hours in the day to accomplish everything I would like to. As I churned through my emails I started to question—how much of this can we own as individuals? If we acknowledge (as countless articles have) that email is universally reviled, if it’s quantifiably stealing years from our one and precious lives, where is the revolution?

But there are options here, especially if we focus on human beings and the choices at our fingertips.

1. Block Time

Block time on your calendar for “email churn” and avoid checking it any other time. Whether your block lasts one, two, or three hours is up to you—decide what works in the context of the expectations of your chosen profession and level. Just make sure you give your team the heads up.

At this stage, you might be thinking: “But you just don’t understand. . .” Rest assured, I do. Exceptional circumstances are the bane of change, in my view. Dare to question your assumptions; there are usually workarounds.

For example, client responsiveness is key in my profession. Yet at the same time making meaningful progress on projects often requires several hours of uninterrupted focus. How should you reconcile these two things? First, I turned off the new message alerts that pop up every time an email arrives—how incredibly distracting! To compensate, I created sound alerts for specified individuals, namely my clients. This way, I don’t miss important outreach and I am not distracted by the constant visual and audio pings of arriving emails.

2. Make it a Team Effort

Support your team’s use of time blocks and real downtime. Avoid being that annoying colleague who clicks send on an email then runs down the hall and asks “Did you see my email?” I know I am guilty of this myself. Agree on a strategy that works for everyone.

For example, instant message (or dare I say an old fashioned phone call) is a great workaround for time sensitive outreach. Just be careful not to abuse the system in your enthusiasm—there is a difference between satisfying our craving for instant gratification and that which is truly time sensitive. Which leads me to. . .

3. Be Thoughtful

We’re all suffering from email overload, but we’re all contributing to it as well. What can we do, as individuals, to reduce this suffering?

For example: I had 30 or so emails in my inbox that included some variation of “Hi Laurie, are you free to catch up this week?” That’s it. No context. No available times proposed. These emails create several avoidable extra steps for me, and are more likely to be filed or deleted. It’s mathematical, not personal. I love my work and the people involved, but there are only so many hours in the day.

When crafting an email:

Be succinct but offer context

Offer available times if attempting to schedule

Consider if all recipients truly need to be included

Avoid back and forth thank you, you’re welcome, and other pleasantries that multiply email traffic

If it’s after hours or on the weekend, consider saving it as a draft or scheduling delivery during business hours. We all need a break from email. This isn’t a lack of worth ethic; this is brain science. Many of us catch up during odd hours, but this creates unnecessary stress for others. Unless it’s urgent, do we really need to click send immediately? I’ve received emails from people I respect on Easter Sunday and Christmas Day. And as I caught myself judging them, I realized I was the loser checking email. On Easter Sunday. And Christmas Day. There are no bad guys and good guys here; we are all co-creating this insanity.

4. Avoid Checking Email First Thing

Getting sucked in to email upon waking up in the morning is a well- known productivity killer. And yet so many of us do it. Why? It’s gratifying, it’s easier than tackling harder tasks, and having so many unread emails can feel mentally paralyzing or even risky, especially if we’re working across global time zones.

Try this: Before anything else (except maybe meditating or exercising) spend 15-30 minutes clarifying your goals for the day and planning your schedule. Then ideally accomplish one nagging task—this sets you up mentally for a productive day.

Now it’s time to check in and make sure there aren’t any landmines in your inbox.

5. Address Root Cause Issues

Investing the time to address several root cause issues of email overload would be time well spent:

Report spam

Unsubscribe

Use email signatures or text expanders for often used responses

Discover what other email productivity hacks exist in your Outlook, Gmail or other providers

Ask to be left off unnecessary emails

6. Take Command of Your To-Do List

Your inbox is not your to-do list.

Whether you use a technology solution or an old school notebook, have a place to offload the mental weight of your to-do list. Even better, calendar it. If the deliverable is important, dedicate specific time. If it’s not, file or hit delete.

As a next level hack, designate a clearly identified place on that list for your top 5 priorities for the day. This is your North Star. This is what you (not others) have identified as your top priorities.

This accountability will serve you well when you find yourself churning through email or being pulled in to the fire drills of others throughout the day. Ask yourself: “Why is my attention elsewhere and not on my top priorities?”

It’s like meditation. We’re human and prone to distraction, especially when it involves helping others. The magic is recognizing when we’ve drifted off and getting ourselves refocused. Over and over again.

7. Write Like a Boss

My emails are lengthy. I like to write. My poor suffering colleagues would likely vote me off the island if brevity mattered. So it’s time to walk my talk.

Moving forward, I am committed to writing a healthy percentage of my emails the way CEOs do, specifically:

Keeping emails very short (possibly one line)

Saying “No, but thanks” more than others would like

Using “On it” to assure the sender I have their outreach in mind (which I may or may not action right away)

Reduce the number of people cc’d

Using fewer lead-ins and other non-essential words—emails are specific and straight to the point.

Ramping up quick responses from my phone instead of more thoughtful (and lengthy) responses from my desk

Reducing use of small talk, pleasantries and social banter

This last one may take some getting used to. I like people, and want our exchanges to be friendly and warm. Professionally and personally this matters. But I am committed to the cause.

8. Declare Bankruptcy

Several times a year, I return from vacation with 600-800 emails in my inbox. For an efficiency hack, this is paralyzing.

While keeping up with email during vacation may not be sound advice for everyone, ultimately I found that it works best for me.

The trade-off? I declare bankruptcy my first day back in the office. Everything truly essential has already been dealt with or delegated while I was away. Now, it’s time for the egregious act of hitting select all and moving everything to a folder I cheekily name something like “August 2017 Post Vacation Bankruptcy.”

My inbox is empty. My head is clear. I can focus on my top priorities. And while I am mildly anxious and have undoubtedly disappointed some, the overall benefits are worth the risk. I trust that anything urgent will appear again. And I am prepared to own it and say sorry if any important balls get dropped which, surprisingly, rarely happens. Later, I will churn through this folder (at a designated time—see Rule #1) and make sure I didn’t miss anything.

9. Set Boundaries

Is anything sacred anymore?

I attended a wedding in 2007 when BlackBerrys were all the rage. Being issued one signaled to the world that you were important. At one point all five groomsmen were heads down on their devices during the rehearsal which took place at a beautiful vineyard on the North Fork of Long Island overlooking the ocean. Instead of connecting with each other or enjoying the view, these old friends were on email. Remember this was before iPhones, before we were all so addicted. The emails weren’t urgent but the groomsmen’s desire to impress (or check out) took precedence during a once in a lifetime weekend. I snapped a photo because it was novel; but that scene might be considered normal now.

Ten years later, I am hopeful that having the courage to be unplugged and present in our lives will emerge as the new status symbol.

Meantime, we are in control of how much we allow email to infiltrate our lives. Just because an email arrives doesn’t mean we must immediately respond. Ask yourself: “If I am being honest, is this really so time sensitive?” Better yet, ask your partner. They will happily tell you no, it’s not.

Whether for a project requiring deep focus, family dinner, date night, workouts or other elements of living a fully realized life, experiment with setting aside a sacred block of time when you’re 100 percent off the grid.

Does your commitment to being a present parent or avoiding burnout trump your fear of missing out? Is it strong enough to overcome distraction? Have you told others so they hold you accountable to your commitment? A few months ago, I set a goal of taking a one hour walk per week without my iPhone. I’ve been surprised and humbled by how difficult this is. I am still a work in progress on this.

We are all a work in progress. At present, I feel like email is winning. But this afternoon, I transformed my frustration in to this article. I am fighting the good fight, and this small victory will hopefully serve others as well.

Bonus: Use Email as a Force For Good

Spend five minutes today sending someone a note expressing gratitude, kudos, or support if they’re going through a challenging time.

This post originally appeared on Ellevate Network.

from Web Developers World https://skillcrush.com/2018/03/09/how-to-manage-your-inbox/

[opepin]

april: week three

17: i ended up waking up at 8 am. i did open my eyes at 7:30 am but i felt like i needed more sleep. i hit my sleep goal of 7 hours but i’m trying to get 8 hours of sleep every day now. so i got up, brushed my teeth, did cardio kickboxing for 35 minutes, ate breakfast while cooling down, showered, changed, and realized that i still had time to curl my hair if i wanted to and relax a bit before heading out to work! today i chose to work from home because of the boston marathon day and all of that traffic. so, based on my test, it looks like waking up at 7 am will do the trick. it’s about 30-40 minutes earlier than i usually wake up, but we’ll see if it’s worth it. i felt tired but a tiny bit more awake after. kevin was still sleeping so i hopped on my laptop and tried to do work quietly before heading out into the living room to do my first solo call ever :)

i think i went into it too fast but phil liked my bold approach aha. the rest of the day was working on my tutorials and fixing up some client stuff. kevin and i microwaved leftovers and ate outside today. it was soooo nice. then we went back to work and we went to roche bros afterward. we got a $5 strawberry rhubarb pie and also the latest sweet chili garlic snyder’s pretzel pieces, which are pretty good. i think the honey mustard flavor still has my heart. the pie was good and then i ate half a slice more and then my stomach died a bit. i exercised and then showered and relaxed for the rest of the night. i felt moody... i helped kevin wash the dishes while he cooked. we ate a late dinner and i didn’t eat much because of my stomach and i was going to sleep in like an hour. we watched an episode of ‘the travelers’ and then i got into bed at like 10:45 pm and knocked out a bit after.

18: mmm i felt awake when my alarm rang at 7 am. i stayed in bed for a bit and then got ready and did a 25 minute dance cardio workout. i showered and then ate breakfast. i think i’ll be fine doing this for a while. i did a good amount of work in the morning and then walked to the high st food truck area with cole and charles. they got food while i deposited my extra cash. cole got a beautiful mango lassi and i wish i could get one too but nooo ;( i ate with the dev guys and then hopped on my standup right after. my astigmatism kicked in real bad during the last half of the day but i continued doing work and taking breaks when needed. oh, prepare yourself because this is tmi (maybe), but i got my period and i wasn’t expecting it but i had two panty liners in my wallet so it was ok for a bit... so i tried checking the free tampon and pad dispenser but nothing was in it. i asked the front desk worker and she said she put in a work order asap. 20 minutes passed and i checked back -- nothing. then it became a few hours and still nothing. so i was stuck at work and had a call at the end of the day that i had to be on. so i had to use the tp technique and then got home asap. sigh. it wasn’t bad though because it was the first day :)

i did stop by the chocolate store with cole though ahahhaa. i got a dark chocolate easter bunny head on a stick and a dark chocolate peanut butter egg for the price of one! they were on sale of course. cole got his juicy pear jelly beans and his pb cups again. i got back and then chilled for a bit and then did the second part of my exercise routine. it felt good! i did bang my knee on the floor but it’s okay, LOL. then i washed the dishes and put the chicken in the oven and i showered. kevin got back kind of late so i snacked on grapes and watched ‘reign.’ kevin showered and then cooked veggies while i played ‘bravely default.’ then we had dinner while watching the second episode of ‘the travelers.’ kevin doesn’t really like it after finishing the second episode. i just gamed and kind of paid attention. it was already 10:30 pm by the end of show so i got ready for bed, kevin cuddled with me before i slept and then he went to game. i slept a bit later than expected, but it was still only 11:15 pm.

19: it felt like someone punched me in the stomach and i kept tossing and turning in my sleep. i looked at my phone and it was 6:30 am T_T so i laid in bed until 7 am or so and then got up. i had to do a bit of clean up and then i went right into my workout. i managed to do 30 minutes of hiit and abs, prepare breakfast, shower, change, eat, pack up my bag, and say goodbye to kevin. i thought i was going to be late but i got to the office at like 9:20 am. i got on a 8:40 am train though and there were minor delays? hmm. interesting. anyway, i really wanted to go into the office for some reason. i asked cole if i could sit at his desk but he answered during lunch time so i just worked at my desk. i wanted to look out the windows today to help my eyes. it was hard getting into the work zone, but i did it! i got hungry early so i ate my lunch at my desk and then went to high st to look at the food trucks.

there was ‘gogi on the block’ and they had smoothies! the line was extremely long though. there was also a chickpea food truck, which was interesting. i walked back and then went back to work. at the end of the day, i chatted with raj and cait about new york, food, and etc. it was a nice conversation and i ended my day on that. i was so brain dead at 4 pm so it was nice getting to talk to them :) i met up with kevin at the children’s museum and we took the train home together. i nommed on chocolate when i got back and we chilled on the sofa for a bit. then kevin played overwatch while i did 30 minutes of abs. i went and showered and then helped kevin cook the one pot spring pasta. we ate while watching ‘the 100′, which we both do not like. then we just spent the last hour before i went to sleep looking at apartments. we might move and we have a pretty good idea of where we would move. we might even tour the place on saturday just for fun and to see :) i got ready for bed and then ko’d at around 11 pm. kevin spent the rest of the night probably gaming.

20: i was tired when i got up... but i still did 16 minutes of hiit and also 14 minutes of hip hop cardio. my morning was a bit rushed but i made it to work on time and i ate breakfast :P the office was obviously packed because it was thursday and even though i was tired, i was more focused than i was yesterday. i talked to gbf about workouts and etc. i also got to talk to jeanne for a bit too. the day went by pretty fast. i caught up with phil and then went on a demo with him and the team. i ended up being pretty productive by the end of the day. cole left early with steve and i had to stay back and finish up work anyway. i took the train back home and then chilled for a bit and did some back workouts. then i took a quick shower and watched youtube videos for the rest of the night. kevin made eggs with chives and rice. we ate that while watching another episode of black mirror. this one was slightly funny in my opinion, but it was also sad. i was going to wfh tomorrow so i stayed up a bit longer than usual. me and kevin just looked a bit more at apartments. i fell asleep on kevin while he was playing pokemon. then he went to play overwatch and i went back to sleep. i drooled on him a little and he just laughed :P

21: my body woke me up at 7:30 am but i went back to sleep until 8:30 am and then i got up 15 minutes later. i did a less intense zumba exercise today because my body is pretty worn out. then i showered and hopped on my 10 am call. i did a good amount of talking during this call today and it went well :) then i spent some time working on the clients’ stuff. oh, kevin made me an egg sandwich this morning and it was so yummy :D hehe cooked some red onions and it was perfect. so i did some work and got a chance to pick up my packages! we got our prints from rotofugi and i got my package from memebox. i just re-ordered the dynasty cream and i got the benton travel kit because i wanted to hit free shipping. everything in that kit is aloe-focused so my skin should be fine. i talked to vivian for a bit and then went back to work.

i am frustrated with blogilates’ videos right now... they’re super short and she talks at the beginning of every single one. it’s a pain to skip it every time. i tried two of her new butt videos and then gave up and did two of chloe’s legs and butt videos. kevin came back and we ordered from hakata ramen. we both got their new sushi burgers. i got the unagi and he got the crab patty. we shared a dragon roll. it wasn’t what i expected... it was an actual burger with just the meat that was stated. i thought it was going to be rice patties :( my burger was meh. their “sweet potato fries” were actually 5 pieces of sweet potato tempura and the dragon roll (as usual) was great, ahha. we watched another episode of black mirror while eating. this one annoyed me because the protagonist was not like-able and she was kinda useless, ahha. the rest of the night we gamed and went to sleep pretty early at 12 am or 1 am. i think we were both wiped out by this week. i can feel my body adjusting to my schedule changes though. :) so grateful for kevin understanding my schedule change and both of us trying our best to spend time together still even though i sleep at 11 pm, get up at 7 am, and he sleeps at 1-2 am and gets up at 9-10 am. thanks, bearest.

22: i wanted to work out in the morning but i just stayed in bed. i was tired and i knew i was going to do the 60 minute kickboxing video later so i told myself i would just do it all in one go because we had a chill weekend. we ate leftovers for breakfast and then we headed out to the mall so i could do some shoe research and just to get out of the apartment and walk around. we also wanted to eat more of the auntie anne’s pretzels...ahha. we stopped by all the department stores and some clothing stores. i didn’t get anything and after all of that, i just figured that i really want the dr. scholl’s loafers i’ve been looking at. kevin ended up getting red sperry sneakers at nordstrom and they look really good on him. we got an original pretzel and some cinnamon sugar nuggets before shopping and it was too much for us. luckily, we filled up our water bottles and we just walked it off. we stopped by brookstone so that kevin could get his massage and by 3:45 pm, we were exhausted. being in a mall wiped us out and it was screen / signage overload. man, we’re so old now haha.

we drove to oh my tea to get some boba before our apartment tour at west of chestnut. we chilled in the car because it got too cold. oh, let me mention that winston beat my step score for fitbit and i tried my very best to walk everywhere but still couldn’t beat it at the end of the day. this boy walked 20k steps on friday and saturday so i’m like wtf. i’ll get back to him! anyway, kevin and i got into the apartment and started our tour. the leasing agent, lisa, was so funny and nice. this apartment complex is really nice. the floor plan we looked at is bigger than deco and about the same price. it was a good tour and we ended on a good note. i think the biggest difference is that deco is a bit more luxury with the gigantic bathtub and bathroom and just the way the kitchen cabinets are presented, but the atmosphere at west of chestnut (woc) is much more chill and friendlier. we took note of this and will keep them in mind. the location is prime because it’s near the quincy center train stop and in the middle of downtown quincy -- we could walk to fat cat and it is right across the street from oh my tea. x__x;

we headed to shaking crab after and got some cajun fries, garlic noodles, alaskan snow crab, and crawfish. mmm. it was both our first times eating seafood in a bag with sauce and it was pretty good. kevin was having so much fun! i had fun learning how to break seafood. the fries were on point and so were the garlic noodles. they were the best garlic noodles i’ve ever had. we went home in a good mood. we both gamed for a bit to digest and then kevin went climbing and i did my workout. it was good! i thought my stamina would be worse because i split my exercise this past week, but i did everything perfectly. it was a great workout -- i felt great. i showered and then i talked to hillary on the phone for a bit. i miss this girl :< i’m so happy i get to see her in a week! it was around 12 am but i still wanted to watch ‘about time’ with kevin so we hooked it up and watched that. kevin said it is his favorite chick flick now. yasss, this movie still gave me all the feels. kevin got real giddy when watching :P it was cute. we talked about the movie for a bit after and i had a pretty bad headache so we brushed and then went to sleep at like 3 am (no wonder i had a headache). 

23: we woke up at around 10 am and stayed in bed until 11 am. i watched some youtube videos and then took my sunday morning shower -- it’s such a treat :) then i ate potstickers that kevin cooked and some cereal and some leftover pasta. then i played some ‘bravely default’ and watched more videos until kevin was done playing overwatch. we meal planned and then headed out! we went to bj’s first because we needed to restock on a lot of things from there. then we went back to unload the car and put everything away. we got back in the car and parked in kam man but crossed the street to check out the other asian grocery store. it’s called, “lucky fortune” and it is way smaller than kam man but their produce and seafood is sooo fresh. we’re definitely going here for some fruit now. they also had a wide selection of snacks and i got this interesting grape squeeze pocky there. kevin got real hungry and bought a hotdog bun and some egg tarts. oh, we got candy samples at bj’s because we managed to get there early :P anyway, i had a lot of sugary snacks.

i also snacked on the new berry cheerios we got from bj’s and they are so good. anyway, we got some scallions and produce there, went over to kam man to get a few more groceries, and headed to roche to get white bread, kale, and my dark chocolate for period weeks. i actually found the brand i was looking for! maybe i’ll make a showcase on random things i got this week haha. then we drove back, put everything away, kevin made himself some soup dumplings we got at lucky fortune (they were delicious), and i watched more videos. i had a lot of videos to catch up on. then i contacted fitbit customer support because i stained my pink band :( my customer service rep was a dream and she made an order for 2 replacement bands. i got 2 of the regular ones because i wanted to get a darker one so colors wouldn’t transfer so easily. then i did some surveys and internet errands while kevin cooked.

i did laundry, cleaned the bathroom, and cleaned the kitchen today. we ate shrimp toast and stir fried cabbage for dinner while watching an episode of ‘black mirror.’ then we realized how “late” it was (for me) and so we took out the trash and kevin washed dishes while i cleaned some of the tables. then he vacuumed and swiffered while i completely cleaned the kitchen. we were we about done, i broke my glass mug T__T it was sitting on a chair because i put it there to clean the island and when i went to pick it up and move it, it slipped and hit the ground. i was pretty upset. :( i got it from mark during the christmas white elephant thingy. sigh. kevin did his best and cheered me up though <3 his hugs are the best. then we brushed our teeth and i showered and i went to sleep while he gamed. he did wake me up while arguing with jon about something -- the usual LOL.