There are many tools in Outlook that can help you keep a better organization and control of your Outlook inbox. Flags, categories, rules, and to do lists are very important if you are on a role with a high volume of incoming emails.
The Tags group in your Home ribbon has options for retention policy, categories/labels, and flags.
You can use the Categorize option in the Tags group to add labels to your emails, assigning labels for different levels of urgency, different actions needed, or any other way in which they can help you keep a better organization in the workplace.
You can click on Categorize and All Categories to open the Color Categories window. In this window, you can manage your current labels, add shortcut keys to them, create new labels with custom colors, and delete labels.
To label an email, right-click it and select Categorize in the menu list that appears. Outlook will add a colored label to the email you have categorized.
The Tags group in your Home ribbon has options for retention policy, categories/labels, and flags.
Follow Up flags are a way to mark email messages that you need to follow up on later. When you flag a message, Outlook will add a small flag icon to the message header. You can also set a reminder for the flag, so that Outlook will notify you when it's time to follow up.
To flag a message, select the email you want to flag and click Follow Up in the Tags group. You can also right click the email and select Follow Up in the menu list that appears.
When you click Follow Up, a menu will appear with several options, allowing you to set a follow up on the same day or following days. You can also add a reminder, so Outlook notifies you whenever you need it to.
Rules are a way to automatically manage your email. You can create rules to move messages to different folders, flag messages for follow-up, or take other actions.
To create a rule, go to File > Manage Rules & Alerts. In the New Rule dialog box, select the conditions that you want to use to trigger the rule. For example, you can choose to create a rule that moves all messages from a specific sender to a specific folder.
Once you have selected the conditions, you can choose the actions that you want Outlook to take when the rule is triggered. For example, you can choose to have Outlook flag the message, delete the message, or forward the message to another person.
When you are finished creating the rule, click OK. Outlook will then apply the rule to all messages that meet the conditions that you specified.
The To Do pane in Outlook is a pane that displays your upcoming tasks and events. You can use the To Do section to keep track of your work commitments, and to ensure that you don't forget anything important.
The To Do pane is divided into the following sections:
My Day: The My Day section shows you a list of tasks that are due today. You can use this section to quickly see what you need to accomplish today.
Important: The Important section shows you a list of tasks that are important but not necessarily due today. You can use this section to keep track of tasks that you need to complete but that don't have a specific deadline.
Planned: The Planned section shows you a list of events that are scheduled for the future. You can use this section to keep track of upcoming meetings, appointments, and travel.
Assigned to me: The Assigned to me section shows you a list of tasks that have been assigned to you. You can use this section to keep track of tasks that you are responsible for completing.
Flagged email: The Flagged email section shows you a list of emails that have been flagged for follow-up. You can use this section to keep track of emails that you need to respond to or act on.
Tasks: The Tasks section shows you a list of all of your tasks, regardless of their due date, priority, or assigned resource. You can use this section to view all of your tasks in one place.
When you create a task, you can add steps, add it to the My Day section, set a reminder, add due date, assign it a category, add a file to the task, or type down notes.
