ms outlook as productivity tool

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MS Outlook as Productivity Tool

1 Sending E-mails

1.1 E-mail Options

You can set various e-mail options when sending an e-mail. To do so:

Create a new e-mail

Click on the Options button on the toolbar at the top

The following screen will appear

Field Description

Importance Sets the importance of the e-mail to Low, Medium or High. It

Sensitivity Sets the senility level of the e-mail to Normal, Private,

Confidential or Personal

Use Voting

Buttons

Use this option if you want to request specific responses from

people. Example if you would like to enquire about an option.Separate each button by a ; e.g. Pizza;Chinese;Hamburgers


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Request a delivery

receipt for this

message

Put this option on if you would like a notification once the

message is delivered to the recipients e-mail server.

Request read

receipt for this

message

Put this option on if you would like to be notified if the message

was read by the recipient. This will also let you know if the

recipient deleted the message without reading.Have replies sent

to

This option allows you to automatically send replies to your e-

mail to other people. You cannot send replies to Distribution

Lists.

Save message In Click on the Browse button to select a different folder than the

Sent Items folder for this message to be filed once sent.

Do not deliver

before

Enter a date and time that you would like to delay this message

to before sending. This is useful for sending bulk e-mails after

hours

Expires After This will make a message unavailable after the date and time

entered

Contacts Select contacts that you want to link this e-mail to. The

message will not be sent to this contact it will only appear in the

contacts activities. See 4.4 Contact Activates

1.2 Flagging and E-mail for Follow Up

When composing an e-mail you can flag it for follow-up. Click on the red flag on

the toolbar

This will set the e-mail to be followed up in your as well as the recipients mail boxes.

You can see the items for follow up in the for Follow Up link under Favourite

Folders

Choose thetype of followe.g. Phone

Call, Fax, replyetc.

Specify theDue Date for

follow up

You can alsoenter a time


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2 Categorising

A category is a keyword or phrase that helps you keep track of items so you can easily

find, sort, filter, or group them. Use categories to keep track of different types of

items that are related but stored in different folders.

Categories also give you a way to keep track of items without putting them in separate

folders. For example, you can keep business and personal tasks in the same task list

and use the Business and Personal categories to view the tasks separately.

Microsoft Outlook supplies a list of categories, called the Master Category List. You

can use this list as it is or add your own categories to it.

Based on how you work, you can also:

Create new categories in the Master Category List in advance and then assign

items to them later.

Assign items one at a time to categories as you create each item.

2.1 Categorise an E-mail when received

To categorise and e-mail once it is received right click on it.

You can viewthe follow upitems here


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Choose Categories

2.2 Categorise an Email when Sending it

To categorise and e-mail when you are composing it click on the options button on

the toolbar.

Enter thecategory here

To make partof the mastercategory list

click here afterentering it

You can alsochoose

categories formthe Master

Category Listby checking the

boxes

Edit the MasterCategory Listby clicking on

this button


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Click on the Categories button or type in the category in the category field.

3 Changing the Inbox view to group by Category

Click on View Arrange By Categories

Click here tochoose a

category ortype it


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Outlook will open the contact screen and put the persons name and e-mail address in.

To enter the telephone numbers simply select them, press ctrl and drag the number tothe appropriate place


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4.2 Storing Contact information

You can enter other contact details by simply clicking on the drop down arrows

next to the fields


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4.3 More Details

You can use this tab to enter more details.

Click here todisplay more

contact details.Choose oneand enter the

details

You can alsoassign a

picture to thiscontact by

clicking here


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4.4 Contact Activities

As you work with contacts, its useful to have at your fingertips e-mail messages,

appointments, tasks, documents, or other items related to the contact. You relate items

to a contact by creating links. For example, if you create a task to call several of your

contacts, in the task item, you can use the Contacts button to link the task to those

contacts. You can also relate documents to a contact by linking them. E-mail

messages that you send to any of your contacts are automatically linked to those

contacts, as are any items that you create by using the Actions menu.

The Activities tab of any contact item shows an overview of all the items related to

that contact. By default, Microsoft Outlook searches for links to items only in the

main Outlook folders, such as Calendar, Contacts, and so on. But you can create

new folder groups to be searched, and within each folder group you can add and

delete folders to be searched.

4.5 Creating your own fields

You can create custom fields to store other information about a contact. E.g. Province

or Region

Click here tosee the

activities forthis contact

When youdouble click onan item it will

open it up


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To create a field. Click on the New button

You can now enter data into that field.

Click here tosee the fields

for this contact

Click here tocreate a new

field

Enter the nameof the field e.g.

Region

Choose thefield type


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You can sort and group by these fields you have added.

4.6 Creating a distribution list

A distribution list is a collection of contacts. It provides an easy way to send messages

to a group of people. For example, if you frequently send messages to the marketing

team, you can create a distribution list called Marketing Team that contains the names

of all members of the marketing team. A message sent to this distribution list goes to

all recipients listed in the distribution list. Recipients see their own names and the

names of all other recipients on the To line of the message instead of seeing the name

of the distribution list. You can use distribution lists in messages, task requests,

meeting requests, and other distribution lists.

You can easily add and delete names in a distribution list, send it to others, and print

it.

Distribution lists are identified with and are stored by default in yourContacts

folder, so you can sort and assign categories to them. If you use Microsoft Exchange

Server, your Global Address List can contain global distribution lists, which are

available to everyone who uses that network. The personal distribution lists that you

create in yourContacts folder are available only to you, but you can share them by

copying and sending them to others.

You can send a message or meeting request to part of a distribution list by clicking the

plus sign (+) next to the name of the distribution list to show the individuals on the

list, and then deleting the names that you do not want. Distribution lists in the E-mailfield of a contact cannot be expanded.


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To create a distribution list:

4.7 Sending and E-mail to a contact or distribution list

To send and e-mail to a contact from the contacts screen. Simply click on the contactand drag it to mail

Click on thedrop down

arrow when incontacts

Click here

Give the List aName

Select themember of this

list

Save the list


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5.2 Inviting People to a meeting

To invite other people to a meeting click on the Invite Attendees button on the top

toolbar.

Click on the To button to choose the contact you would like to invite.

5.3 Checking other peoples schedule

Once you have chosen the people you would like to invite to the meeting click on the

Scheduling tab and you can view their schedules to see if they are available.

Give the meetinga name

Type thelocation of the

You can labelthe meeting

e.g. aspersonal,vacation,

Busioness etc.Enter the start

date of themeeting andthe duration

You can also bookand all day event

Indicate how the time shouldbe reflected in your diary e.g.

Busy, Free, Tentative

Use this spaceto type amessage

You can link itto a Contact

If you mark ameeting as

private otherpeople cannotsee it in their

calendar when

they book you

You can assignit to a Category

You attach files

to yourappointment


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5.4 Managing Meetings

You can track if attendees will attend by opening the meeting and clicking on the

Tracking Tab

Attendees arelisted here

Blue indicatesthat they are

busy

If you click here it will automatically jump tothe next available time when all attendees

can make the meeting


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Take Note:

Once you have sent a meeting request the recipients will get an e-mail thatwhen opened has buttons at the top to Accept, Decline or Tentatively

accept the invitiation

5.5 Recurring Meetings

To schedule a series of meetings click on the Recurrence button on the toolbar

You can seewho have

accepted ordeclined the

meeting

Click here to view all theattendees schedules and

propose a new time. This willsend an e-mail to all theattendees with the new

proposed time

Click here toview yourcalendar


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This will allow you to book a series of meetings for example a Monthly Board

Meeting.

6 Tasks

A task is a personal or work-related errand you want to track through completion. A

task can occur once or repeatedly (a recurring task). A recurring task can repeat atregular intervals or repeat based on the date you mark the task complete. For example,

you might want to send a status report to your manager on the last Friday of every

month, and get a haircut when one month has passed since your last haircut.

Indicate how

often themeeting occurs

Indicate whenthe meeting is

to stopoccurring

The Task List

You cancomplete a

task by clickingin the tick box


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Tasks have Due dates and reminders can be set for tasks

6.1 Creating a Task

To create a task co to Tasks and click on the New button

6.2 Assigning a Task to someone

In addition to creating your own tasks, you can create tasks that you assign to others.You do this by sending a task request to someone. The person who receives the task

request becomes the temporary owner of the task. They can decline the task, accept

the task, or assign the task to someone else. If they decline the task, it's returned to

you. (You still have to reclaim ownership by returning the task to your task list.) If

they accept the task, they become the permanent owner. If they assign the task to

someone else, the new assignee becomes the owner.

Enter the DueDate for the

taskUse this space

to type amessage

You can link itto a Contact If you mark a

meeting asprivate other

people cannotsee it in their

calendar whenthey book you

You can assignit to a Category

You attach filesto your

appointment Give the task aname

Current Status of

the task

Select the priorityof the task


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The owner is the only one who can make changes to the task. When an owner updates

a task, Microsoft Outlook updates all copies of that task the copy for the person

who originally sent the task request and copies for any prior owners of that task.

When the owner completes the task, Outlook automatically sends a status report to the

person who originally assigned the task, any other prior owners, and anyone else who

requested a report.

If you assign a task to more than one person at a time, you cannot keep an updated

copy of the task in your task list. To assign the same project to more than one person

and have Outlook keep you up to date on work progress, divide the work into separate

tasks, and then assign each one individually. For example, to assign a report to three

writers, create three tasks named Write Report: Writer 1, Write Report: Writer 2, and

Write Report: Writer 3.

To assign a task to someone click on the Assign Task button.

Use the To button to select whom you would like to assign the task to.

Click on Send

6.3 Recurring tasks

To create recurring tasks click on the REcurrance Button on the toolbar

Indicate howoften the task

occurs

Indicate whenthe task is to

stop occurring


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Take Note:

Once you assisgn the task to someone you cannot set a reminder for

The person who accepts the task becomes the owner of the task.

If the person completes, updates or deletes the task that you have assingnedyou will be notified via e-mail

The task will automatically be placed in the assignees task list once accepted.

7 Notes

Notes are the electronic equivalent of paper sticky notes. Use notes to jot down

questions, ideas, reminders, and anything you would write on note paper. You can

leave notes open on the screen while you work. This is especially convenient when

you're using notes for storing bits of information you may need later, such as

directions or text you want to reuse in other items or documents.

otes stay open on your desktop if you Minimize Outlook.

7.1 Creating a Note

To create notes click on the Notes

Double click in the blank are or click on New


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Type the Note

Double Clickhere to create

a Note


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7.2 Changing a Notes colour

7.3 Forwarding a note

8 Journals

Journal automatically records actions that you choose relating to the contacts that

you choose and places the actions in a timeline view. In addition to tracking Microsoft

Outlook items, such as e-mail, or other Microsoft Office documents, such as

Microsoft Word or Microsoft Excel files, you can keep a record of any interaction you

Change thenote colour

here

Click here toforward the

note tosomeone


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want to remember even something that is not located on your computer, such as a

phone conversation or a handwritten letter you mailed or received.

Use Journal to record the dates and times of your interactions with contacts, such as

tracking hours spent on a particular account. If you want to create a list of all the

items related to a contact, use activity tracking, instead, to link the items to thatcontact.

Do you remember the day you worked on a file, but can't remember the path to it?

Use Journal to locate information based on when you perform actions. For example,

you can quickly look up an Excel document you worked on last Tuesday if you set

Excel documents to be automatically recorded in Journal.

Journal entries are recorded based on when the action occurs. For example, a Word

document is recorded on the timeline when it is created or was last modified. You can

organize Journal entries on the timeline into logical groups such as e-mail

messages, meetings, and phone calls to quickly locate information, such as all themeetings you attended in the past week or month.

You can open a Journal entry and review details about the activity, or you can use

the Journal entry as a shortcut to go directly to the Outlook item or the file that the

Journal entry refers to.

8.1 Creating a Journal

Click on Journals

The following dialog box apprears


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To stop this dialog fromappearing all the time tick this

box and click on No

Double Click

here to createa Journal


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9 Outlook Today

The Outlook Today page provides a preview of your day. By using Microsoft

Outlook Today, you can see a summary of your appointments, a list of your tasks,

and how many new e-mail messages you have. You can set this page to be the first

page that opens when you start Outlook, and you can change the way Outlook Today

appears.

9.1 Showing Outlook Today

Ensure the Advance toolbar is visible

If it not click on the View Menu then on Toolbars Advance

Give the

Journal aSubjectIndicate what

type of JournalEntry it is. E.g.

Phone Call,

This will timehow long youspend on this

item

You can makenotes here

Click Here toshow Outlook

Today


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9.2 Setting Outlook Today as your default screen

Click here tocustomise

outlook today


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10 Rules & Alerts

Rules help you manage your e-mail messages by performing actions on messages that

match a specific set of conditions. After you create a rule, Microsoft Outlook applies

the rule when a message arrives in yourInbox or when you send a message. Forexample, you can automatically:

Forward to your manager all messages sent by Judy Lew when they arrive in

yourInbox.

Assign the category Sales to all messages you send that have the word "sales"

in the Subject box.

Flag each meeting request or meeting update you receive from your manager.

Rules fall into two general categories: notification and organization. Notification rules

alert you in some way when you receive a particular message. For example, you can

create a rule that automatically sends an e-mail message to your mobile telephone

when you receive a message from a family member. Organization rules perform one

or more actions on a message. For example, you can create a rule that moves certain

messages to a folder or flags them for follow-up on a particular day.

You can also run one or more of your rules manually. Running rules manually allows

you to selectively apply them to messages already in yourInbox or in another folder.

You can add exceptions to your rules for special circumstances, such as when a

message is flagged for follow-up action or is marked with high importance. A rule is

not applied to a message if any one of the exceptions you specify is met.

Put this option on tomake Outlook Todayyour default start page

Specify which foldersmust be displayed

How many daysappointments must be

displayed

Which tasks must bedisplayed

Change the look and feel


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Easiest way to setup arule is to click on this

option and following theprompts


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Specify when the message must be checked. When it arrives or when it is sent.

Click on Next


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Specify what the conditions are that must be checked by putting a tick in the

appropriate box.


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You will see it adds the item you have added to the Step 2 section

Click on Next

Once you have tickedand item here you haveto give it details below

You have to specify thedetails of the conditionsby clicking on the blue

underlined text


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Click on Next


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If there are any expections to the rule you can specify it here


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10.2 Changing Rules

Make sure you are in your Inbox

Click on the Tools menu

Choose Ruels & Alerts

You can change thename of the rule

If you put this tick on itwill run the rule on your

inbox


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Click Change Rule to create a new rule

10.3 Disabling Rules


Click on the Tools menu

Choose Ruels & Alerts

Click here to change arule


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10.5 Deleting a rule


Click here to run a rule

Put a tick in the rules youwould like to run

Click here to run the rules


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