Outlook: It's Time to get Organized

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If you're like millions of other business professionals, you probably use Microsoft Outlook every day to manage your email, calendar and to-do's. It's available for Windows, Mac, mobile and there's even a web version.  So there's no excuse not to be organised. Or so the theory goes. The reality is email overload, missed deadlines and calendars so full you have no room to breathe.

For many people, managing their email, their calendar and their to-do's has become a full-time job in itself. In this session you will learn how to control Outlook, rather than letting it control you.

Why you should attend
You're probably thinking "I use Outlook every day. I know how to send and receive emails. I know how to add appointments to my calendar and I know how to add items to the task list. What more is there to learn?"

In this session you'll learn how, used in the right way, Outlook can save you time, help you to gain more control, improve your response time and allow you to keep up with the never-ending stream of critical actions and due dates!

Topics covered:

•    The 4 D's of email management
•    Configure Outlook for distraction-free productivity
•    How to use Rules to automate email processing
•    How to use Quick Steps to automate a series of actions
•    Converting emails into Tasks
•    Using Categories to tag emails, calendar items and Tasks
•    Using Views to display information in a way that suits you

Who should attend / Level
This session is aimed at anyone who uses Microsoft Outlook and is looking for a way to get back those precious hours!

  • Mike Thomas

    Mike Thomas

    Mike Thomas has worked in the IT training business for 26 years. His expertise and experience covers designing and delivering training courses, creating written training materials (Quick Reference Guides and step-by-step tutorials), recording and editing video-based tutorials and providing support t [...]

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Frequently Asked Questions

The 4 D's of email management is a proven framework for making a clear, immediate decision about every email you open in Microsoft Outlook, eliminating the habit of reading messages and leaving them in your inbox without acting. The four decisions are: Delete — remove emails that require no action and have no future reference value; Do — if the email requires a response or action that takes two minutes or less, handle it immediately; Delegate — forward the email to the appropriate person to handle and track the handoff; and Defer — if the action requires more than two minutes, convert it to a task or calendar item and file the email out of your inbox. Applying this framework consistently transforms email from an overwhelming pile of unresolved items into a processed, organized system where your inbox contains only deferred items awaiting your scheduled attention. Outlook's flagging, Rules, and task conversion features are purpose-built to support the Do and Defer steps of this workflow efficiently.
Outlook Rules are automated instructions that process incoming (or outgoing) emails based on conditions you define, performing actions like moving, flagging, forwarding, or deleting messages without manual intervention. To create a rule, right-click any email and select 'Rules' then 'Create Rule,' or access the full Rules Wizard through the Home tab for more complex conditions. Common high-value rules include routing newsletters and subscription emails directly to a designated reading folder, flagging emails from your manager or key clients with a specific color category, moving project-specific emails to their corresponding folder based on subject line keywords, and deleting automated notification emails that don't require review. Rules run in the order they're listed and can include exceptions — for example, moving all emails from a domain except those addressed directly to you. Well-constructed rules can eliminate the majority of manual inbox sorting, ensuring that when you open your inbox, what remains genuinely requires your attention and decision-making.
Outlook Quick Steps are customizable one-click shortcuts that execute a sequence of actions on an email simultaneously — combining what would normally require several menu selections into a single button press. For example, a Quick Step might mark an email as read, move it to a specific folder, and flag it for follow-up all at once. Another common Quick Step might reply to an email with a preset message, or forward a message to a specific recipient and move the original to an archive folder. Quick Steps appear prominently in the Home tab ribbon, making them easy to access during rapid inbox processing. Unlike Rules, which run automatically, Quick Steps are triggered manually — giving you full control over when each action sequence fires. For administrative professionals handling repetitive email workflows — routing approvals, filing expense receipts, or distributing reports — Quick Steps can save dozens of clicks per day and bring consistency to routine email tasks that would otherwise require multiple manual steps each time.
Converting emails into tasks in Microsoft Outlook is one of the most effective ways to ensure that action items don't get buried in your inbox. The simplest method is to flag an email for follow-up by clicking the flag icon on the message — this marks it in your inbox and simultaneously adds it to your Task list with a default due date that you can adjust. For more control, drag an email from your inbox directly onto the Tasks icon in the Navigation Pane, which creates a new task with the email's subject pre-populated as the task name and the full email body included as the task notes. This preserves the original context while removing the email from your active inbox. You can then set a specific due date, add notes, and assign a category or priority. The task appears in both the Tasks module and the Daily Task List in your Calendar view, keeping it visible alongside your scheduled time blocks. This workflow ensures that every email requiring action becomes a visible, dated commitment rather than a forgotten message.
Outlook Categories are color-coded labels you can apply to emails, calendar appointments, tasks, and contacts, creating a visual organization system that spans your entire Outlook workspace. Assigning a category — like 'Client A,' 'Finance,' or 'Urgent' — lets you instantly see the context of any item at a glance. You can filter or sort your inbox, calendar, or task list by category, instantly surfacing all items related to a specific project or priority area. Views extend this organizational power by letting you define exactly how Outlook displays items — grouped by category, sender, date, or any other field, with custom column layouts and sort orders. Creating a custom view called 'By Project' that groups emails by category, for example, transforms your inbox from a chronological list into a project-organized workspace. Views in the calendar can show a single day, work week, full week, or month, and can overlay multiple calendars. Combining consistent use of categories with tailored views creates a personalized Outlook environment that surfaces the right information in the right context with minimal manual navigation.