Michelle - E-mail overload is caused by the sheer volume of messages zipping around the globe.White-collar workers often receive 140 messages a day. Some professionals are fighting back by declaring e-mail-free Fridays — or by deleting their entire in-box.

Prominent tech bloggers are tackling the problem individually by declaring “e-mail bankruptcy” — deleting or archiving an entire in-box and starting over.

Intel has kicked off “Zero E-mail Fridays” - e-mail isn’t forbidden, but everyone is encouraged to phone or meet face-to-face. It can take four minutes to refocus on work after checking an e-mail. E-mail-free Fridays give employees more time to solve customers’ problems. Link.