This e-mail management strategy has worked well for a very long time. I never dread checking my e-mail now!
- Read or mark as read every e-mail you've evaluated.
- If the e-mail requires action, either create a todo item, or if the action cannot be evaluated yet, leave it in your inbox. Archive everything else.
- Create filters to label and archive e-mails from mailing lists.
The net effect is that having e-mails in your inbox tells you that there is something that needs taking care of. When you have time to handle mailing lists as well as your regular inbox, the search is:unread becomes your new inbox. All other e-mail is hidden unless you search for it.
The secondary effect is that when your inbox is empty, it means you're free to read e-mail at your convenience. (Or you can do something more fun.)