I get anywhere from 40-50 emails on an average day. If there’s a project underway, that number can easily double and lately, there have been a lot of projects! Add in that I am responsible for SEVEN inboxes and I could justifiably lose my mind. But, when it comes to my digi work, I am über-organized. Today, I’m going to share some tips to help you keep your email traffic under control.
My first tip for staying organized is to employ the use of a Mail Client. A Mail Client is an application that runs on a personal computer or workstation and enables you to send, receive and organize e-mail. You may recognize the name Outlook or Outlook Express, which are both mail clients offered in the Microsoft Office suite. These aren’t the only mail clients, however, and you certainly don’t have to pay for a good mail client.
According to About.Com, the top 3 free Mail Clients available for Windows are:
1. Mozilla Thunderbird
2. Windows Mail
3. Eudora (Sponsored Mode)
If you’re on a Mac, About.Com lists the following as the top 3 free Mail Clients available for download:
1. Mac OS X Mail
2. Mozilla Thunderbird
3. Eudora (Sponsored Mode)
In short, these applications allow you to collect your email on your desktop without manually logging in to the Internet. If you have an open Internet connection, DSL or Broadband, the application automatically checks your inbox on regular intervals and reports new emails when they arrive. Cool stuff!
Building on the first, my second tip is to use the features of your Mail Client to help you stay organized. Features that I could never live without are:
1. Folders & Subfolders
Once you’ve read an email, it’s marked as ‘Read’ then gets lost into oblivion, right? Not with Folders. I’ve created a variety of folders relevant to the various roles and projects that I have and along with ‘Rules,’ explained below, they get filed away in logical, easy to search folders for future reference.
2. Search feature
This feature can be used to search in an almost infinite variety of ways: From, To, Subject, Folder, Keywords, Date, Account, etc. Practically speaking, a friend emailed her new telephone number but I hadn’t transferred it to my cell phone. Within a few keystrokes, I had the email and the phone number. Very cool.
3. Rules (also Filtering Rules)
I can’t say for sure how many mail clients have this feature, but for my money, it’s priceless! Since I have seven email addresses to monitor, I use Rules to automatically organize my incoming mail. For instance, in my role with the PWOC Graphics Team, my counterpart and I can exchange 20+ emails in a few hours’ time. I have a rule that automatically files any email from her to a folder of the same name. Any email that arrives from my Web Manager inbox, automatically gets filed into a folder of that name. I even have a folder for emails from my husband!
4. Customized mail views
Since I have my Mail Client collect messages from seven difference inboxes, I find it much easier to view my unread emails using the Unread Mail customized view. This view categorizes my messages by the folder they’ve been filed to, which makes it infinitely easier to prioritize the messages that need my immediate attention and which messages can wait.
5. Address Book
Do I need to explain this one? I love having my address book available to me no matter what I’m doing. It’s available to every email account and doesn’t have to be rebuilt every time I change or add an inbox. In fact, mine is comprehensive. I include mailing addresses, phone numbers, etc. AND I have it synched to my phone so that I have the most up-to-date info available to me no matter where I am.
6. Groups
Referring back to the Address Book, Groups is a feature that allows you to create a shortcut group for sending messages. For instance, as Regional Secretary, I send emails to all of my local secretaries from time to time. I have a group created such that all I have to enter into the ‘To’ field is ‘PWOC Local Secretaries’ and the application automatically fills in the many addresses. Brilliant!
7. Redirect
Okay, there’s no feature by this name, that’s what I call it. I changed personal email addresses a few months ago and am trying to ditch the old one. The trouble is that a few people haven’t deleted that old address from their address book so I still get messages to it. If I reply to the message from that inbox, the problem will just perpetuate, right? Mail Client’s give you the option to reply to any message from the account of your choice. For instance, I receive an email in my old account (into my mail client) and I want to reply. After I click the ‘Reply’ button, I simply change the account from which the reply will be sent. At that point, I can simply ask the sender to delete the old address and replace it with the one from the address line.
8. Flags
I don’t use this feature a great deal but when I do, it comes in so handy! There are certain messages that you just know you’ll need to read again, right? I recently received an email from our PWOC International Advisor on a policy ruling. Given the nature of the message, I knew I’d want to find it easily again in the future. Filing it in a folder was the first step but giving it a priority flag makes it so much easier to find that no matter how much time passes, I’ll be able to locate that message within a few easy keystrokes.
9. Keep it Open
Even if I’m not on my laptop during the day (which is rare!), I can still keep up with my incoming mail easily. By keeping my Mail Client open, it will automatically check my various inboxes and alert me to new messages so that as I walk by my laptop, I can glance at the screen and see if there’s something that needs my immediate attention. By closing your Mail Client each time you use it, you are defeating the main reason you even have one…to simplify the process of checking email! Waiting for the application to open is little different than logging in to an internet based account. Keep it simple and keep it open.
10. Other Features
Mail Clients often have other features that may include calendar, task manager, to do lists, etc. I know that my husband uses the calendar feature of his mail client to keep his busy schedule organized. He also has it synched to his smart phone so that he always knows where he’s supposed to be, even if he’s not!
To learn more about each of these features, harness the power of the Internet and your favorite search engine. Simply enter the name of your Mail Client and the feature you want to learn more about, and you’ll be amazed at the wealth of information that pops up.
Don’t let the fear of the unknown keep you from these cool time-saving features. They really are easy to employ and can save you a tremendous amount of time and frustration.
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