Triage is a sort, not a reply session
In ten minutes you are only deciding what category each message belongs in. Writing comes later.
Use three buckets only
More categories create decision fatigue. Stick to reply, attention, and no action.
- Reply: external stakeholders, revenue, deadlines, or anyone you owe a response
- Attention: internal updates, long threads, or items you must read before deciding
- No action: notifications, marketing, automated reports you already track elsewhere
Sort by sender before subject
Your brain recognizes people faster than subject lines. Handle VIP senders first, then unknown senders with urgent keywords.
Let software handle repeat patterns
When you reject the same newsletter or vendor pitch twice, your assistant should remember and stop drafting replies for similar mail.
replyt learns from dismissals so triage gets faster over time.