How Often Should I Process Stuff in My Inbox?

[erase12]

How often should I process stuff in my Inbox? I understand that in the weekly review I will be processing stuff in my inbox, should I wait until the weekly review to process all the stuff in my inbox? Or Should I process stuff to zero as often as I feel necessary, to feel "mind like water"?
Your thoughts are greatly appreciated.

Thanks
erase12

[Oogiem]

How often should I process stuff in my Inbox?

I find I have to allow about an hour a day to process my inboxes. Weekly review inbox processing is to catch any you have not already done not to do the entire week's worth of input processing at one time.

[mmorowitz]

Processing frequency might depend on the volume of stuff that hits your inbox.

I absolutely process daily. Ideally twice a day.

[TesTeq]

How often should I process stuff in my Inbox? I understand that in the weekly review I will be processing stuff in my inbox, should I wait until the weekly review to process all the stuff in my inbox? Or Should I process stuff to zero as often as I feel necessary, to feel "mind like water"?
Your thoughts are greatly appreciated.

Thanks
erase12

I think this is similar to the question: "How often should I wash my hands?"

The answer: each time when I feel that they are not clean enough.

I don't wash my hands after hammering each nail but I do it before a meal.

[ChrisIQTELL]

The answer: each time when I feel that they are not clean enough.

That makes a lot of sense to me, but I am always concerned that I'll end up spending too much time going back and forth between my Inboxes and tasks. The transition between the two can be very wasteful. Am I overthinking things?

[Suelin23]

I process when I first get into work, after my lunch break, and just before leaving for home.

[ChrisIQTELL]

That's not a bad idea. One of the most distracting things in the office is that "New Email" notification that pops up in the taskbar of my computer.

[Suelin23]

Yes, that popup is distracting. But I figure anyone who is sending an email isn't after immediate attention anyway, and three times a day is plenty more than a lot of people I know.

[pxt]

I process at different times during the day, sometimes in a big sit-down and other times in little pieces.

My only rule is that I hit zero once a day.

[RuthMcT]

I can do collecting, but processing is my big stumbling block. I know it needs time, but I keep letting other things which feel more urgent take priority, especially matters regarding my patients. I need a big rethink on how I organise my time.

Ruth