内容来源：https://lifehacker.com/use-the-4d-method-to-keep-up-with-your-inbox-1850878672?utm_medium=RSS

内容总结：

【邮件管理新法：四步告别收件箱焦虑】面对堆积如山的未读邮件，你是否常陷入“该从何下手”的决策疲劳？近日，一种名为“4D法则”的邮件管理方法在效率爱好者中流行起来。该方法主张通过快速决策将邮件归类处理，帮助用户高效清空收件箱。

“4D”即四个以字母D开头的英文单词，分别代表：删除（Delete）、立即处理（Do）、委派他人（Delegate）和暂缓处理（Defer）。支持者认为，这套方法将复杂的邮件处理简化为四选一的决策流程，既能降低心理负担，又能避免拖延。

具体操作时，建议每日固定时段集中处理邮件。面对每一封邮件，可依据以下原则判断：

• 对垃圾邮件或无需跟进的内容，直接删除；
• 对需本人即刻处理的紧急任务，立即执行；
• 对可交由同事办理且不增加其负担的事务，转派他人；
• 对非紧急但需后续跟进的事项，暂存归档。

处理完毕后，建议二次清理已解决或已转派的邮件，保持收件箱接近“清零”状态。实践者反馈称，该方法通过减少决策选项，有效提升了邮件处理效率，尤其适合每日需处理大量邮件的职场人士。专家提醒，成功的关键在于严格遵循分类原则，并使之成为日常工作的固定环节。

中文翻译：

管理收件箱是一项永无止境的任务，因此我们应尽可能简化这项工作。当邮件堆积如山时，你难免会反复纠结该如何处理——至少我自己深有体会。但若将处理方式精简至最基础直接的选项，就能有效缓解决策瘫痪，助你牢牢掌控局面。"四步法"（又称4D法则）正是为此而生。这套方法简单易记、便于实施，能帮助每日被海量邮件困扰的人们高效应对。以下是具体操作指南。

什么是收件箱管理的4D法则？

这套应对爆满收件箱的方法流传已久，其核心在于通过快速决策帮你轻松筛选邮件。历经时间检验的法则确实有效——但前提是真正理解其要义。

顾名思义，4D代表四个以字母D开头的英文单词：

• 删除邮件
• 立即执行邮件要求
• 委托他人处理
• 暂缓处理

这些原则易于记忆，一旦熟练掌握便能轻松运用。该方法倡导者（如XTRF翻译管理系统业务发展经理亚历山德拉·布热斯卡）指出，只要坚持践行就能见效。以下是具体实践方式。

如何运用收件箱管理的4D法则

4D法则与"一次处理原则"异曲同工。事实上它不仅基于该原则，更进行了深化拓展。使用"一次处理原则"时，你会在打开邮件瞬间做出决策，但重点在于收到邮件立即打开。要使这些技巧生效，你必须打开每封邮件，或至少浏览主题行判断是否值得打开。因此首要任务是：每天设定固定时间处理所有邮件。例如运用时间盒法，每天早晨划出专属时段完成这项工作。当采用"3-3-3清单法"等时间管理方法时，应将邮件管理列为每日待办事项的核心环节。

每日处理邮件时，请参照上述四个选项为每封邮件做出选择：若内容无关紧要、属于垃圾邮件或无需跟进，立即删除；若涉及当下可完成、属于职责范围或较为紧急的任务，即刻执行；若属部门同事可处理且不会造成负担的非紧急事务，转交委托；若适合近期处理但无需立即行动，则通过归档、移入文件夹或添加星标的方式暂缓处理。

完成分类后，请再次检查收件箱，对已处理或已委托的邮件进行归档或删除，为下一波邮件腾出空间。此方法的优势在于使决策过程简洁迅速且可操作，同时保持收件箱清空或接近零未读状态。通过消除不必要的选择或拖延，整个流程得以精简，你只需沿着四种路径推进，确保所有事务要么妥善处理，要么彻底从待办清单移除。

英文来源：

Managing your inbox is a never-ending task, which is why we should seek to simplify it as much as possible. When emails pile up, you start overthinking what you need to do—I know I do, anyway. But if you pare down your options to the most basic and straightforward ones, it'll help ease your decision paralysis and keep you on top of things. That's what the "four Ds," or the 4D method, does. It’s easy to remember and easy to implement, which makes it helpful for anyone who has a pile of emails to contend with every day. Here’s how to follow it.
What is the 4D method of inbox management?
This method of managing your overflowing inbox has been around quite a while and rests on quick decision-making to help you easily weed through it all. Time-tested, it works—but only if you get what you’re supposed to do.
4D stands for, obviously, four “D” words:
Delete the email
Do what the email says
Delegate what the email wants you to do
Defer it
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Those are easy to remember and, once you get the hang of calling them to mind, easy to do. Proponents of the method, like Aleksandra Brzeska, business development manager at XTRF Translation Management System, say this works as long as you adhere to it. Here’s how to put it in action.
How to use the 4D method of inbox management
4D is similar to the one-touch rule. In fact, it relies on it, but takes it a step further. When using the one-touch rule, you make a decision about the email as soon as you open it up, but with that one, your focus is simply opening it the moment it comes in. For these techniques to work, you have to be opening every email, or at least looking at it and identifying from the subject line whether it’s worth opening. So, first things first, you’ll need to designate a time every day to sort through all your communications. Use timeboxing to block out time every morning, for example, to get this done. Make email management a core part of your daily to-do list when you use a method like the 3-3-3 list.
When it’s time to go through your messages every day, set out to make a choice about each one, referring to the four options above. If it’s irrelevant, spam, or won’t ever require a follow-up, delete it. If it calls for a task that is doable right now, you’re responsible, and/or it’s pretty urgent, just do it. If it’s a less urgent task for someone else in your department or could be handled by another person without overloading them, delegate it and forward it their way. If it’s something that could or should be handled in the near future but doesn’t require immediate action, defer it by archiving it, putting it in a folder, or starring it.
When this is done, go back through once more and archive or delete anything that’s now been done or delegated, clearing out your inbox for the next wave of messages. The benefit of using this method is that it makes decision-making simple, quick, and actionable, plus keeps your inbox low or close to zero. Removing unnecessary choices or procrastination streamlines the process and keeps you moving in just one of four ways, ensuring everything gets done or removed from your plate.