A while back I went down a productivity rabbit hole and realized I'd been handling email completely wrong. And I wasn't alone. 

Nobody ever taught us how to manage email. Most of us keep emails unread as reminders. Our inbox becomes our to-do list. We end up with dozens (or hundreds) of open emails staring at us every day. 

It's overwhelming, inefficient, and there's a better way. 

The System That Fixed It 

When you check email, you're ONLY checking email - not doing tasks. 

Here's how it works: If something takes less than five minutes, handle it immediately. Client asks a simple question you can answer right there? Answer it. But if it requires you to log into the carrier system, pull up the policy, and review the account carefully before you can respond - that becomes a task. 

Add it to your actual to-do list, schedule time in your calendar to work on it later, and close the email. 

This does three things: 

1. Separates checking from doing 

2. Keeps your inbox clean  

3. Gives you control  

What Made This Actually Work 

Check tasks before emails. Every morning, review your task system BEFORE you touch email. Know what's urgent and important before the flood of incoming emails tries to hijack your day. 

Time block your email processing. Schedule 3-4 blocks throughout the day - maybe 20-30 minutes each. Early morning. Pre-lunch. Mid-afternoon. End of day. Between these blocks, you're doing actual work, not just reading about work. 

Work oldest to newest. When you're in your email block, work systematically. This prevents you from cherry-picking the easy stuff while letting the hard stuff age. 

End your day with planning. List your priorities for tomorrow before you close out. You'll start tomorrow proactively instead of reactively. 

The Real Test 

The forcing function for us came when we implemented shared inboxes. You can't leave a messy common area for your team. 

Shared inboxes exposed every gap in our email habits. We had no choice but to tighten our system. Move emails to tasks within 4 hours. Close emails immediately after creating tasks. Document everything so anyone could pick up where someone else left off. 

It made us dramatically more efficient. Our team processes emails faster, and nobody's drowning in unread messages. 

The Bottom Line 

Stop using email as your to-do list. 

Check email during designated blocks. Apply the five-minute rule. Move tasks to your actual system. Close the email. 

Your inbox (and your sanity) will thank you. 

A Personal Note 

This newsletter is coming out on my birthday - November 19th - so I wanted to share something personal with you. 

I grew up in La Habana, Cuba and migrated to the US in 2001 when I was 13 years old. Not a day goes by that I don't think about how fortunate I am to live in a country that allowed me to build a business. 

I got into life insurance at 19. Found P&C insurance at Liberty Mutual a few years later. Started my own agency after that. 

Looking back, I had a lot of dreams and was incredibly naive about what it would take to succeed. But that naivety actually played in my favor - because if I'd known how hard it would be, I might never have started. 

Building an agency from scratch has been one of the most difficult things I've done in my life. It's also been the best experience for my growth as a person and as a professional. 

At 37, I've found purpose in what I do. I didn't love insurance when I started, but I love what I'm building now. It's more than money - it's a legacy. 

I hope I can help and inspire more agents to keep fighting the good fight, to build with purpose, and to be part of this noble industry. 

Thank you for being part of this journey. 

—Michael Cruz