overload? Waste time looking for and re-reading emails? 'Mark as unread' so you'll go back to deal with it? Feel anxious that you're not getting back to people? Worry about what's lurking in the middle of your inbox?
Process email periodically 2. "I don't know" is a good answer, as is "do you still need this?" 3. "It’s not how many messages are in your inbox–it’s how much of your own brain is in that inbox" 4. It's a process, not a state. Especially not a state that requires significant infrequent effort 5. Delete, delegate, respond, defer, do