Win the Notification War

Every now and then, I get on with a colleague or a friend who shares their screen briefly with me.

Perhaps they're showing me a presentation or something they've been working on.

About 90% of the time, they click around a bit, and I'm able to get a glance at either their email inbox, text messages, or Slack notifications.

Good God, what is this absolute disaster zone?

Hundreds, if not thousands, of unread notifications, bolded channels, tags, numbers.

It's the most confusing thing I've ever seen in my life.

How does anyone get anything done like this?

How do you know it's important?

How do you track things?

My goodness gracious.

This is just an absolute catastrophe of staying clear mentally and organizationally.

So here's what I need you to do:

Email Purge:

• Unsubscribe ruthlessly from newsletters, promotions, and updates you don't actively read

• Set up filters to auto-archive non-critical emails (receipts, notifications, etc.)

• Turn off all email notifications

Slack Discipline:

• Leave every channel that isn't directly relevant to your current projects

• Mute channels you need to stay in but don't need real-time updates from

• Turn off ALL audio notifications (seriously, no sounds)

• Only allow desktop/mobile notifications for direct messages from key people

Most people are addicted to the dopamine hit of notifications. They mistake being "responsive" for being productive. But constant reactivity kills your ability to think strategically and do meaningful work.

A organized notification system is key to a clear mind, clear thinking, and well-organized work.

And if I find out your Slack MAKES A SOUND when you get a new message… I’m going to be VERY UPSET.

I am IN a ton of channels, but I go in and read them when I WANT, not when someone writes a message.

Clean email. Clean slack. Clean texts. Clean mind.

Yallah Habibi.

Jon

P.S.

This is some of the feedback from the 12 week course I’m teaching for free to Sagan Members (and their teams) about getting organized. Free. Included with membership.