Your inbox full of emails is taking days away from your life.
Every Monday, your email inbox is clobbered with mail from the after-hours of Friday to the annoying weekend emails that can wait for next week. By the end of the day, the average American spends five hours daily checking both personal and work emails, according to a new survey.
CMO by Adobe found that Americans spend around three-plus hours a day checking their work email while logging two-plus hours a day sifting through personal inboxes, which happens through work meetings, meals, and even right before bed each night.
The frequency of checking work-related emails increased by more than 10 minutes from 2018. However, personal email use decreased by 20 minutes, according to the study, which interviewed over 1,000 US adults.
The increased reading of work emails could also explain how Americans are more open to reading work emails as opposed to personal emails. The survey found that about 80% of respondents opened work emails more frequently compared to personal emails, which was about 57%.
Where we check our emails
When it comes to work emails, Millennials resist the urge to check them unless they’re at work. But nearly half of all respondents (48%) said they don’t check their work emails until the start of each workday. However, there are exceptions such as breakfast (25%), commutes (15%), and while in bed (13%.)
For personal emails, a quarter of respondents said they first check it while still in bed. Another 42% will scroll while getting ready or munching on breakfast, while another 16% said it’s their routine during their commute.
While vacationing, Baby Boomers were the most likely to ignore work-related emails but checked their personal inboxes frequently. About a quarter of Millennials and Gen Xers admitted to checking their work email multiple times a day while on vacation, with a third also scanning their personal email.
Originally published on The Ladders.
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