Cyber Clutter

Hi everyone, another week gone and soon it will be Easter. All the kids are on school holidays here, so I imagine all the parents will be busy entertaining them and trying to stay sane. I have a busy day ahead as I am going to attempt to launch my online shop. I have some beautiful crystals to sell, so keep your eye out.

Today I am going to write about cyber clutter. So what is cyber clutter? Cyber clutter includes emails, paying bills online, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, web pages you manage or any other online tasks you have to do. It can include online games you play. It can include Netflix, Stan, Foxtel or other internet shows you watch. You also have information in your calendar on your smart phone or tablet. Some of us, if we work in an office, have emails at our work and then we have emails in our personal inbox. If you are like me and have a hectic full-time job with lots of emails, it can be exhausting keeping on top of it all and by the time you get home, the last thing you want to do is look at your own emails.

Most companies are trying to go paperless, so now instead of paper clutter, we have cyber clutter that we forget about. However, it is still there sitting in our inbox waiting for us to delete it or file it in a folder. I have to admit this is one of the challenges I face in my personal life. I really dislike paperwork, whether it is physical or online, LOL! However I have found doing some each day really does help.

So how do we get so many emails, other than bills that come in via email? We have subscriptions we sign up for. Some include newsletters we get from people we decide to follow on social media that we want to read. Other sources are our subscriptions to Netflix, Stan, and Apple etcetera advising us of latest show releases or receipts for our payment. Others could be from Afterpay & Zippay if you have accounts with them. Emails from loyalty or membership cards you may have, such as Flybuys, Qantas, RACQ, gym memberships and the list goes on.

How many of us buy something on line and they want our email address? You then get the confirmation order sent to you by email, the email advising it is being processed, another one stating it has been shipped and then the tracking... whew! seriously, that is like four or five emails for one order. Not only that suddenly you are getting all their daily, weekly and even monthly emails about other products they are trying to get you to buy. Suddenly you have like forty emails from one source in a month. Times that by let's say ten different companies you order something from and your inbox is bombarded. Crazy, right? I am not sure about you, but it seriously does my head in. Some you can unsubscribe from, however I know it can take four attempts sometimes for them to stop emailing you.

You can also look into changing the settings in subscriptions for other sites you use regularly so you receive their emails as often or as little as you want. Spending a little time each day deleting emails you don't need and processing and filing others in a folder will help manage this. Unsubscribe to subscriptions you no longer need. I have a tax folder and put any receipts I need to claim in there, so when tax time comes, I have it all ready to go. It can be daunting but having a daily routine in place helps keep it manageable. Also it will keep it out of your head as mental clutter for things you need to do.

I hope this has helped shed some light on what cyber clutter is. Spend some time going through your emails and subscriptions and remove any you no longer need. If you can do this on a daily basis it will be easier to manage. I would love it if you could please share my blog and Facebook page with your family and friends. Have a fabulous week.

Love & Blessings

Heids xoxo