On a human level, they're just folks trying to make a living; so I usually try to respond fairly quickly, and politely (except to the mass email blasts, screw t

On a human level, they're just folks trying to make a living; so I usually try to respond fairly quickly, and politely (except to the mass email blasts, screw that). I just try and say "thank you for reaching out, I'm happy at my current position at the moment, but please do keep me in mind as you come across new opportunities in the future"...or something like that. And then I remind them of what I actually do, (since they most-likely contacted me about something I'm not remotely qualified for). On a business level, you're a walking pile of money to them. So it really doesn't matter when you start being responsive; they'll be happy to engage whenever you're ready.