During times when important results such as test scores, college admissions, sales, and coupon deals are constantly announced via email, checking one’s email is a huge time consumer. But you can avoid anxiously wasting away hours by setting specific times per day to check emails, or switching to the Gmail app, which notifies you whenever you receive emails.

On the other hand, if you are always texting or typing out your email to give to people at promotional events, make your life a little easier by setting your email in your phone as a keyboard shortcut.

 
Go to settings > general > keyboards > text replacement and then enter the desired phrase.

Speaking of email, it can be hard to convey tone in a formal way. The following are simple tips to avoid awkward emails that are either too bleak or overly enthusiastic.

• Set a limit of the number of exclamation points used for email; one is usually enough.
• Have a clear, concise subject line that gets to the point. This is the first thing the recipient will read.
• If you are emailing someone new, the first sentence should be an introduction of yourself and the point of your email. For example, “My name is…” then “what I am hoping to learn…” “What I need…” “What I am asking for is….”
• If you are emailing someone you have emailed in the past, mirror what you get. Some teachers/bosses/colleagues may only use one-line responses while others prefer embellished paragraphs. Whatever they use, try to match that response style.
• Asking multiple questions in an email can make it boring and long, and oftentimes people do not read over the whole email, resulting in their missing most of the questions. Because of this, consider separating out questions over a few different emails.

Sometimes, the only thing we need to become productive is a good start, but it can be hard with constant web page distractions and social media. If you are looking to stop distractions, try putting your phone on airplane mode to stop all notifications. Other options include the app Self Control (only available for Macs) that blocks specific web pages and applications for you for a certain amount of time. Keepmeout.com will also warn you if you visit specific web pages multiple times and will block you from them if necessary.