We’re just back from a fantastic two weeks in the Azores full of whale watching, hot springs and seafood.

Spirits are lighter but waistbands definitely tighter…

I managed to stay out of my inbox for most of the time, only dipping in once.

Smug, moi?

But I know how easy it is to get sucked in.

Like a drug addict, you promise yourself you’ll check your email ‘just the once’ but before you know it you’ve spent an hour and a half in a back and forth with project manager Pam about a workstream that went off the rails the moment you stepped foot on that aeroplane.

And now you’re hot and bothered, and the beer you had at lunchtime is leaving a sour taste in your mouth.

Don’t let that happen again.

If email ruins your vacation, check out this great article on CNBC.com. It has some excellent practical advice including:

Pad the dates on your OOO autoreply to give yourself breathing room

Choose an ‘email partner’ to tackle emergency emails only; agree they’ll text – not email – you for anything really urgent

Set filters to divert all non-important emails into a separate folder. Your inbox will just hold the critical ones to look at when you’re back.

Take a read. And if it’s too late for this summer, well, read it for the next one.