I recently migrated my email system from GoDaddy to Squarespace / G Suite and even though it was VERY difficult and time-consuming, I’m happy with the results! I’ve realized time and again that because I’m an independent business woman (and every artist who makes $ off their work IS a business person), I have to do a LOT of problem solving, especially for tech stuff. Without going too much into tech details, what first seemed like a 5 step process kept growing in complexity because each step had at least 10 steps to it, and I had to pivot to find other solutions when the first solution didn’t work. The most difficult part was backing up my outdated GoDaddy Webmail. After trying many solutions that didn’t work, a tech friend suggested exporting only the most important emails and just opening the new G Suite with INBOX 0… a fresh start!
This solution has been SO LIBERATING I can’t believe it. Right away, I started using the magic ARCHIVE button which GoDaddy didn’t have and I never felt a reason to use it in my personal Gmail. I just “starred” important stuff. But the simple act of archiving is another step towards simplifying my life (“simplify” is my word of the year). Notice in the above picture that there is NO NUMBER next to the word “Inbox” on the left? Compare that with the number in the pic below:
My personal Gmail has grown into a monstrocity because I’ve never been organized about email before. I feel like this is a life skill that’s not really taught but everyone just keeps getting more and more emails and then they take over. At one point I did hire an assistant to help me declutter some of my emails, as it was over 10,000 messages in my inbox at one point (Dragon Ball Z reference… “IT’S OVER 10,000!!!!”). But since practicing a new way of organizing emails from the fresh start of my new business email, I’m slowly tackling the monster of my other Gmail.
Organizational skills are a big part of the Business Basics for Freelancers Class, and it’s really at the heart of every task you do. Even though I currently don’t have a section about emails specifically, I’m always changing and updating the class to be better each time I teach it! (But that’s also part of why I haven’t put it online yet - hang tight Michigan peeps and Baltimore peeps). If you or a friend you know is a freelancer in the NYC area who’s struggling with the business side of art, please check out the eventbrite and register:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/business-basics-for-freelancers-tickets-49999304265
The next class is Thursday 9/20 in the evening so people with day jobs can make it. Happy to have it at Caffeine Underground once again! Hope to see you there!