I’m a giant fan of effectivity, principally as a result of I’m additionally a giant fan of doing as little work as doable whereas nonetheless getting issues performed.
Fortunately, Microsoft Outlook is filled with hidden gems and intelligent little options designed to make work life simpler. The one downside: They’re buried underneath a bunch of menus or simply aren’t apparent. Listed below are 5 of my favourite built-in Outlook options you may not be utilizing but.
Fast Steps
“Fast Steps” is a neat little automation function that permits you to create a single-click button to carry out a number of actions on an electronic mail.
For instance, you might have a Fast Step that strikes an electronic mail to a particular folder, marks it as having been learn, after which forwards it to a colleague. Or one which marks it as performed and archives it.
It’s basically a macro in your electronic mail, permitting you to automate these repetitive, multistep actions and get them performed in a fraction of the time. Click on the Fast Steps button in the primary ribbon to start out setting them up.
Targeted Inbox
The easiest way to take care of electronic mail is to not take care of it in any respect. For that, Outlook has a function referred to as “Targeted Inbox” that makes use of machine studying to resolve which emails are essential and that are simply noise.
It routinely types your messages into two tabs: “Targeted” and “Different.” The “Different” tab is the place all of the newsletters, notifications, and promotional emails go to stay in peace.
This isn’t a filter it’s important to arrange your self; it’s a sensible system that learns what you care about.
To allow it, go to Settings > Mail > Format, and toggle Targeted Inbox on.
Ignore Dialog
Are you able to name it an actual job should you’re not a part of not less than one lengthy electronic mail chain with a dozen different individuals, and after the third reply-all, you notice the chain not has something to do with you?
That is the place the “Ignore Dialog” function is available in. It’s a tiny little lifesaver.
Choose an electronic mail in your inbox pane, right-click on it, and select “Ignore.” Each subsequent message in that thread will routinely be moved to your “Deleted Objects” folder. It’s a simple, guilt-free approach to excuse your self from a digital dialog you haven’t any curiosity in taking part in.
Sweep
We’ve all signed up for a service, gotten 100 emails, after which realized we don’t need them anymore. Fortunately, Outlook has a “Sweep” function that automates the entire means of mass deletion.
It enables you to shortly delete all messages from a particular sender, and you’ll set a rule to routinely delete any future emails from them as they arrive.
To make use of it, click on Sweep in the primary ribbon whereas viewing a message from a sender you not wish to hear from, and choose the way you’d prefer to deal with present and future messages.
Drag-and-drop assembly scheduling
You’ve obtained an electronic mail from somebody, and you want to arrange a gathering with them. Simply drag and drop the message out of your inbox onto your calendar icon.
Outlook will routinely create a brand new assembly invitation, with the e-mail topic because the assembly title and the e-mail recipient as an attendee. It’s an enormous time-saver if you’re working with a number of purchasers or colleagues and must get a gathering on the books in a rush.
