Inbox lockout scheduling

Inbox lockout scheduling lets you decide when email is visible. You might hide the inbox during a morning of focused work, or allow it to open only at fixed times of the day. The messages still arrive, but you do not see them until the window opens. Inbox When Ready is an example of a tool built around this idea, where the inbox stays hidden unless you choose to reveal it.

Constant checking breaks concentration, and a single glance at a stressful message can derail a morning. A schedule turns email from something that interrupts you into a task with its own slot. It suits people who need long stretches of deep work, such as writers, analysts and founders. If your job is to respond quickly to incoming requests, such as support or sales, locking the inbox could slow replies and cost you business.

• Ask whether the schedule can differ by day of the week.
• Check whether you can override the lock for urgent moments and how easy that is.
• Test whether it hides notifications on your phone as well as the inbox on your computer.
• Ask which email providers and browsers it works with.