[ Why follow-ups matter: It's not just lost income, it's broken trust The reality of running a practice: sessions, sick kids, and things filed under "later" [ Potential client inquiries Discovery calls that went quiet Clients who ghosted mid-package (yes, even prepaid ones!) Unanswered portal messages People who downloaded freebies but never heard from you again These are relationship moments, not just admin tasks [ Using labels and folders (Courtney's an inbox zero + folder person!) Smart inboxes in Apple Mail desktop app Courtney's favorite folders: Meetings folder (automatically sorts all meeting invites) To-Do (using orange flag + orange heart emoji) Waiting on Reply (purple flag + purple heart emoji) Pro tip: Use emoji to remember which flag color = which folder [ Creates tasks directly from emails Integrates with Apple Reminders Why Courtney switched from big project management tools to Apple Reminders for small tasks "It's the little things that slip through the cracks and cause the most risk" [ Use tags to flag clients who haven't booked their second session Create tasks within Practice Better Filter clients who don't have recent bookings [ Just like habits with clients: if it doesn't come naturally, you won't use it Look at what you ALREADY use (email, calendar) and build on that Google Tasks is right there in Google Calendar—use what's in your face Don't create a Google Sheet tracker if you never open Google Sheets [ Don't overthink it—keep it short and warm For inquiries: "Hey, I just wanted to follow up in case my last message got buried. I'm still happy to chat if you're interested." For ghosted clients: "I've been thinking about you and wanted to check in. There's no pressure, but I'm here if you're ready to reconnect." For missed questions: "Apologies for the delay. I missed your message earlier, but I wanted to circle back." Remember: We're connecting, not selling [ Save brain power by having templates ready Reference to previous episode on email templates These feel-good follow-ups are perfect template candidates [ Create a "Waiting For" label/folder in Gmail and assign to 3 emails NOW Calendar block: "Follow-Up Friday" (30 minutes weekly to sweep missed replies) Add a "Follow-Up Needed" custom field in Practice Better Create a follow-up tracking board (Notion/ClickUp/SmartSuite) Try MailButler (or similar email management extension) [ Apple Mail (never bothered before, but now loves it) MailButler extension Busy Cal coo