Updated

Empty the capture inbox once a week by deleting, filing, or assigning a next action to every item.

Choose a batch you can review in fifteen minutes

If your inbox contains hundreds of unread items, a timer will not make them all disappear. Use a short review to decide what to do with a small batch. Start with recent captures for an active project. Leave deep reading for a separate session.

Selecting duplicate Zotero records before checking their fields.
Example in Zotero. Inspect a small group of duplicate records before choosing which details to retain.Zotero

How to divide the fifteen minutes

One review session
Illustrative example
Delete obvious noise
3 min
Place useful references
7 min
Assign next actions
5 min

Editorial example. These times are a suggested allocation, not measured productivity results.

View the data
One review session
Delete obvious noise3 min
Place useful references7 min
Assign next actions5 min

Make one of three decisions

  1. Delete

    Remove duplicates, expired invitations and captures whose future use you cannot explain. Do not delete an original document merely because a preview is unhelpful.

  2. Place

    Move useful reference material with the project or topic where you will retrieve it. Add missing source details.

  3. Act

    For something that requires work, record the task and deadline in your task system. Link it back to the reference.

Colored status tags displayed beside Zotero reference titles.
Example in Zotero. Visible tags can distinguish review states if each one leads to a clear action.Zotero

Note what you resolved and what remains

Review log

Compare successive weeks. A rising queue can mean the capture rate is higher than the review capacity.

Date:
Items waiting at start:
Items reviewed:
Deleted:
Placed as references:
Assigned a next action:
Items still waiting:
Oldest unresolved item:
One change for next week:

Keep the capture context

The observational study Keeping Found Things Found on the Web connects saved information with reminders and relevance context. In a review, keep the reason for saving an item visible so you can decide what to do with it.

Sources and scope

  1. Keeping Found Things Found on the WebMicrosoft Research · 2001-11 · 2026-09-30

    An observational study of how people retain web information, reminders and context.

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