Ever wonder where the work day goes? Ever feel there is never enough time to do anything? You’re not alone. We’re now spending ever more time writing and replying to email at work.

Email, once simply a marvel of modern technology, is rapidly becoming a frankenbeast that dominates our blinking moments. It’s like milking a cow. If you don’t clean out your inbox regularly enough, the whole thing just freezes up.

True, very true. I particularly enjoy sitting there, composing and crafting informative and (if I may say so) useful emails. It’s part of my work though. There is a very strong case however for the gratuitous overuse of email.

How many of the work related emails you receive are from someone sitting less than five metres away? How many are copy ins, regarding issues that are of little, if any, concern to you?

A Toronto public relations firm has decided to deal with the problem of excess mail. A The return to sender award (being a bust of Elvis Presley no less) is presented to the employee who is deemed to have committed the worst email transgression of the day.

Whether The King can dispatch email to the recycle bin remains to be seen. The problem though lies in determining what could be considered excessive email.

A memo from the admin department about keeping the staff kitchen tidy may be going overboard, whereas the daily jokes email being banned would be completely unacceptable!