Tips 1 & 2 of 8 Simple Tips for Email Management

Hope you all had an awesome weekend and now are ready to get started with the exciting journey to overcome a common problem… Email Overload.

There is no better time than the start of the week to get this battle going as your inbox must already be filled with emails from the weekend and you are wondering how to get over it.

If you are planning to archive this emails or moving them using Rules, then that’s a big NO NO!!!.

Let’s find out why…

Tip #1: Turn Off Auto-Archiving in Outlook
You should archive e-mails as projects are completed. Don’t disorganize yourself by archiving based on dates.

“Time is wasted due to delays in trying to work out if the item I am looking for is in current or archive folders ” – (Norman)

Outlook can automatically reduce the size of your data file by removing old e-mails and putting them in a separate file. TURN THIS OFF NOW!

I will show you a better method of archiving later.

Why shouldn’t you use Auto Archive?

Your work is logically divided into projects or cases. Some projects can take months whereas others may take years. Until a project is complete, all e-mails for the project should be visible in one place.

Using Auto Archive will split your e-mails into multiple files which will compound the problem of finding e-mails while a project is active and of archiving e-mails once the project is completed.

SO… if you thought auto-archiving your email was helping you keep Inbox email clean and organized… think again?

Technically you are wasting the same amount of time finding your emails in separate folders as you would have in your Inbox.

TURN AUTO-ARCHIVE OFF NOW!

To turn off Auto-Archiving:

For Outlook 2013/2010:

1. Click File menu > Options
2. Select Advanced
3. Click on AutoArchive Settings…
4. Remove the tick next to Run AutoArchive

For Outlook 2003/2007:

1. Click Tools > Options
2. Select the Other Tab.
3. Click the Auto Archive button.
4. Remove the tick next to Run AutoArchive

This should now stop auto-archiving of your emails… which is the first step forward to a better email management system.

Tip 2: Think carefully before using Outlook Rules
Rules can cause you to miss taking action on certain e-mails and also filing them into incorrect folders.

The three main problems with Rules are:

Problem 1 – E-mails get moved out of the Inbox without you seeing them: Your Inbox is meant to be an action-list. It should show you, in one place, all e-mails that you still need to read and work on.

Problem 2 – Rules shift e-mails out of your Inbox before you have a chance to see them: This means that you have to remember to check other folders for your action list which can result in e-mails getting over-looked.

Problem 3 – E-mails get moved into the wrong folder: If you are working with the same person on more than one project, it is very difficult for an automated system to actually decide what project the e-mail relates to. There is no way to ensure that every e-mail for a project has a word in it that your Rules filter catches.

What’s Next?

We have only started so stay tuned for Tip #3 later this week in which I will be showing you how to keep your Outlook data (emails, contacts, calendar items etc) safe from data loss.

Till next time… have a better Outlook.

Time to join the conversation – what do you think?

I hope that you find the first 2 tips useful in our quest for a better email management system.

Let us know what you think by leaving a comment below. Feel free to share your own experience and the filing system that you use to keep your inbox clean and organized with our readers.

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