[Adam Curry: CurryDotCom] writes "Last night I had an epiphany. I've been trying to solve the deluge of email coming into my life. Desperately trying to develop systems and flow to handle all this correspondence. Then it hit me. I need to change my own perception of mail. From today on I no longer equate email to an electronic version of my mailbox at home. I will regard email as Instant Messaging. Therefore, if I don't respond, the message will scroll off the screen and the sender will have to re-send the message top get my attention. I no longer have an 'Inbox", but merely a current list of IM's of people wanting my attention. Now to inform the world of my decision.... "

I work much the same way as Adam does, but with a level of filtering.  I filter out mailing list mail to folders.  I very rarely actully follow mailing lists on a day to day basis, but I do enjoy being able to work through them now and then.  Also, anything addressed directly to me goes into a special folder.  So in reality I end up with about 3 or 4 messages a day that are specificly for me.  Everything else gets dumped on the floor and I may or may not see it.