Avoiding email

Lesson overview

Objective: Consider other options instead of email

Summary: Email isn’t always the best communication tool, even though we default to using it. Every email you send tends to generate more emails, creating a cycle that takes time away from your important work. Instead of automatically opening your inbox or firing off another message, pause to consider if there’s a better way - like a quick phone call, coffee meeting, or walking to someone’s office. You’ll often find that a 10-minute conversation can replace a series of back-and-forth emails.

Key habits:

• Question your email impulse: Before sending an email, pause and ask: “Is this the best communication channel?”
• Batch similar communications: Instead of responding to emails reactively, create dedicated time blocks for communication
• Protect focus time: Create deliberate boundaries around communication to preserve mental space for high-value academic work
• Model better communication practices: Proactively shape communication culture in your workplace

Introduction

The more you use email, the more you use email. The previous lesson addressed the tendency to respond to email quickly, instead of using a longer process that gets you closer to achieving the goal. Quick, low-information responses often means that colleagues must write back with more questions. And the more people involved in the email thread, the more complicated it is to follow the branching conversations that get generated. Is an unresponsive colleague just delayed, or is he overwhelmed with other priorities? Who is responsible for closing the loop the thread represents? Where are action items recorded? Are you required to respond, or can you stay silent? Will your silence delay the process? Email threads can quickly become confusing and frustrating. This lesson explores alternatives to email that help you close loops more effectively.

The dream of replacing the quick phone call with an even quicker e-mail message didn’t come to fruition; instead, what once could have been resolved in a few minutes on the phone now takes a dozen back-and-forth messages to sort out.

Cal Newport

Common scenarios in academia

Email’s impact goes beyond the time spent writing and responding - it creates a cognitive burden through fragmented conversations and constant context-switching. Here are a few scenarios where alternative communication approaches both save time and preserve mental energy:

Discussing changes with research collaborators: What starts as a simple suggestion evolves into branching email threads that confuse rather than clarify. A focused video call can achieve in minutes what emails drag out for much longer.

Gathering feedback on departmental policies: The inevitable “reply all” cascade creates a mess of overlapping viewpoints and side discussions. A structured in-person meeting keeps the conversation focused and productive.

Coordinating timelines across multiple team members: The daily trickle of status updates and queries fills inboxes but rarely moves work forward. Regular brief check-ins create clarity and accountability.

Aligning teaching approaches across a course team: Email discussions about assessment criteria become increasingly circular. Coffee conversations may lead naturally to shared understanding and better decisions.

Collaborative writing and editing: The back-and-forth of tracked changes and comments fragments the creative process. Scheduled co-writing sessions can maintain momentum and improve quality.

These examples highlight a common pattern: while email can seem like the quickest communication option, it often creates hidden costs in terms of time, mental energy, and work quality. In the next section we’ll explore specific strategies for identifying when to avoid email in favour of more effective approaches.

Why we default to email (and why we shouldn’t)

Email often feels like productive work - it’s task-oriented, provides quick dopamine hits, and leaves a paper trail. But this is deceptive. Email’s primary function should be asynchronous information sharing, not real-time discussion or decision-making.

Common email traps

• Using email as a distraction from challenging cognitive work
• Defaulting to email without considering alternatives
• Creating unnecessary paper trails “just in case”
• Adding to colleagues’ workload with low-value messages
• Using email to avoid difficult conversations

Better alternatives

Consider these options before opening your inbox:

For information gathering:

• Check existing documentation
• Search institutional resources
• Review meeting notes
• Look up policies online
• Ask in team chat channels

For discussions and decisions:

• Schedule a focused conversation
• Have an informal coffee chat
• Make a quick phone call
• Drop by someone’s office
• Organise a working lunch

For project coordination:

• Use project management tools
• Create shared documents
• Schedule regular check-ins
• Set up team workspaces
• Have brief stand-up meetings

Creating sustainable habits

Aim to start small:

• Question your email impulse: “Is this the best channel?”
• Batch similar communications together
• Save email for true asynchronous needs
• Protect your focus time from inbox interruptions
• Model better communication practices for colleagues

Download the template

Pause and reflect

Changing email habits isn’t just a personal choice - it’s a shift that ripples through your professional network. While we can’t transform institutional email culture overnight, we can make intentional choices about our own practices. Here’s what to consider as you develop new approaches:

Common resistance points:

• “I need to send this now before I forget” → Add it to your task list instead
• “There might be something urgent” → True urgency rarely comes via email
• “Everyone expects quick responses” → Set clear boundaries and response times
• “It’s easier just to email” → Easier now may mean harder later

Making sustainable changes:

Remember that email is deeply embedded in academic workflows. Any changes you make will affect your colleagues, which is why you should:

• Start small with manageable adjustments
• Communicate your new approach clearly
• Be flexible when urgent needs arise
• Model the behaviour you’d like to see
• Respect others’ communication preferences

Each small change in how you handle email builds toward a more sustainable and productive workflow, not only for you but hopefully for everyone you work with.

Activity

Convert email to conversation

From today’s to-do list, identify one planned email that could be converted into a direct conversation. Choose something low-stakes to start with - perhaps a project update or quick question. Rather than sending an email, either:

• Make a quick phone call - acknowledge at the start that you’re trying something different to reduce email load
• Walk to their office - use this as an opportunity to build relationship through face-to-face interaction
• Schedule a coffee chat (for complex topics) - suggest 2-3 specific times and have a clear agenda to keep it focused

Document your experience in your notes:

• Time spent vs estimated email thread duration - include both active time and the mental overhead of managing the conversation
• Impact on relationship with colleague - did the direct interaction change the dynamic? Was it more or less comfortable than email?
• Any unexpected benefits or challenges - consider both immediate outcomes and potential long-term effects
• Would you use this approach again? If yes, in what situations? If no, what would you do differently?

Share and learn with others:

• Discuss your experience with a colleague - what worked well? What felt uncomfortable? Share specific examples
• Ask about their communication strategies - how do they decide when to use email vs other channels?
• Consider establishing shared communication preferences for your team - what guidelines could make everyone more productive?

Bonus points: See how many alternative communication channels you can integrate into your daily workflow. For any task that would default to email, pause and ask: Could this be handled more effectively through a quick conversation? A shared document? A brief meeting? Keep track of what works best for different types of communication.

Team bonus: Get together with colleagues to design shared communication guidelines. Review current practices, identify pain points, and agree on when to use different channels. Create a simple framework that helps everyone be more productive while reducing email load. Remember - the goal isn’t to eliminate email, but to use it more intentionally.

Key takeaways

• Email tends to generate more email, creating a cycle of reactivity and distraction: The more you use email, the more time you spend managing communications rather than focusing on high-value academic work. This directly impacts your ability to maintain focus and make meaningful progress on important projects.

• Many email exchanges could be more effectively handled through alternative communication methods: A quick phone call, coffee meeting, or face-to-face conversation can often resolve matters more efficiently than lengthy email threads, while also fostering better relationships with colleagues.

• Making changes to your email habits requires both personal commitment and sensitivity to workplace culture: While you can’t control how others use email, you can develop your own systems to limit inbox-driven work and gradually influence team communication norms in a way that promotes more productive workflows.

Resources

• Newport, C. (2021). A World without email: Reimagining work in an age of communication overload. Portfolio.
• Newport, C. (2019). Was e-mail a mistake? The New Yorker magazine.