# Slack

> Why and how I use Slack the communications tool.

Source: https://curiouslychase.com/tools/slack/

I use **Slack** heavily for communications at [Murmur Labs](https://curiouslychase.com/posts/murmur-labs/), for communicating about open source projects and a few friend groups. It's a critical part of my [digital tool stack](/tools/digital)

# My Slack Conventions
Much like the mind, Slack makes an excellent servant but a terrible master.

I've found that maintaining a few conventions has helped me to manage my relationship with Slack well.

## Disable All Desktop and Mobile Notifications
Disabling notifications is my standard for _every app on every device I use_, so Slack is no different!

My settings for Slack are as follows...

- Click your workspace toggle in the top left corner
- Click **Preferences**
- Click **Notifications**
- Disable desktop notifications. You should see a **Enable Desktop Notifications** button if this is done correctly.
- Notify me about: **All new messages**. This still shows badges _in Slack_, but it doesn't send you a desktop or mobile notification
- Select **Notify me about replies to threads I'm following**
- I have "chase" in **My keywords**. This will show a badge and highlight any instances of "chase". It's useful for when people write my name but don't mention me.
- Select **Mute all messaging sounds from Slack**
- Deselect **Show a badge on Slack's icon to indicate new activity**
[]()

## Reduce the Noise
One of the most difficult challenges of using Slack is that it's easy to get overwhelmed with all the channels.

I've found that the easiest way for me to reduce the overwhelm is to set every section I have to show **Unreads only**.

When there are no new messages, it looks like this:

To set a section to only show **Unread only**, start by clicking the section toggle.
- Hover over **Show and sort**
- In the **Show in this section** options, select **Unreads only**
- Now your sidebar will show up with only the channels that have unread messages.

## Pin Often Accessed Channels
I have a section called **Pinned** for channels I use often. This is helpful for days when I'm working with a Slackbot and need to access it often.

To create a pinned section...
- Right click **Channels**
- Hover **Create**
- Click **Create Section**
- Give the section the name **Pinned** and use the 📌 emoji.
- Click **Create**
- Once this is selected, you'll see **Show and sort** as **All**. Since I only have the ones I use often, it's a very small list.

## Create A Feed Section
At [Murmur Labs](https://curiouslychase.com/posts/murmur-labs/), we have a convention that any channels with  a `#feed` prefix is an automated channel.

I have a section that I put all `#feed-` channels in called **Feed** with a 🤖 emoji.

You can create a section the way you create a section in [](#pin-often-accessed-channels).

The one difference with **🤖 Feed** is I set **Show in this section** to **Unreads only** to reduce the visual clutter.

When there is only one channel with messages, it looks like this:

# Relevant Notes

- [Disable Slack Keyboard Flyup](https://curiouslychase.com/posts/disable-slack-keyboard-flyup/)
- [Slack Messages as Todos](https://curiouslychase.com/posts/slack-messages-as-todos/)

I also work with the [Slack API](https://curiouslychase.com/posts/slack-api/) frequently.