Hitting Reset – Taking Back Control of My Inbox (and Why That’s Only Half the Story)

If your inbox is a constant source of stress, you’re not alone. Here’s how I tackled mine — and what I learned in the process.

Let’s be honest: even with the best plans, life drifts. Systems wobble. Inboxes overflow.

And that’s okay. What matters is not staying stuck. It’s recognising the moment to pause, reset, and take back control.

For me, that moment came in the form of three email inboxes I had long ignored. A mountain of messages, unread badges in the hundreds, and a low-grade sense of anxiety every time I glanced at my inbox.

Inbox Zero (Well, Almost)

So, I started my digital detox with email. Here’s what I did:

• Sorted emails by sender
• Deleted the junk, spam, newsletters, and all the low-value stuff. I would say I took a level 6 out of 10 on the ruthlessness scale. Looking back I could have deleted more.
• Unsubscribed from anything that didn’t bring joy, value or peace
• Filed the important emails into folders. (Note I had 3 attempts at getting the folder structure to work. So top tip spend sime time up front thinking what works for you)

The result? Across three inboxes, I’m now down to just 22 emails – all read and in the process of being actioned.

Email is now a doddle. No more mini heart attacks when a new notification pops up. And the feeling? It’s freeing.

I did have a FOMO wobble at first. Was I being too brutal? Would I miss something important? But I’m glad I stuck with it. It’s amazing how much noise we let in without noticing.

But It Took Time (More Than You’d Think)

Let’s not pretend this was quick. I reckon it took 6 to 7 hours of focused work, spread across a few days. But that effort has already paid off.

The constant digital drip-feed is quieter. Email feels manageable, even calm. That alone makes the time investment worth it.

The Bigger Beast: My Digital Filing System

Now, here’s the honest bit.

I haven’t touched the bigger digital clutter: the mountain of music, photos, home admin, and years of work files spread across OneDrive, iCloud, Dropbox, and several external hard drives

Why? Laziness? Technical procrastination? A fear of opening that folder labelled “Sort Later” that now holds 2,000+ items?

Maybe all of the above.

But I do know this: clearing out email has reminded me how much lighter and clearer life can feel when the digital noise is turned down. And it’s made me want that clarity in other areas too.

And here’s another unexpected upside: it’s not just good for your mental wellbeing, it’s also good for the planet.

Every email stored, every photo duplicated, every draft ‘doc file sitting unused on a cloud server contributes (albeit in small amounts) to energy use and digital storage demands. So as I delete, de-duplicate and organise, I will be reducing my personal digital carbon footprint. Surely that makes it doubly worthwhile. Small actions, multiplied over time, do matter.

So What’s Next?

I’m not promising to overhaul it all in a weekend. But I am thinking about the next small move . Maybe choosing one folder, one category and spending an hour over this week to start chipping away.

Resetting isn’t about perfection. It’s about progress. One decision, one cleared folder, one less thing to carry.

What about you? Have you ever done a digital detox? What worked for you — and what’s still untouched?

Comment below and let’s learn from each other.

And if you’re not already subscribed to the blog, do that now so you don’t miss the next post — it’s probably going to involve finally opening that “To Sort” folder… maybe.