The Productivity Pro® Blog by Laura Stack - Time Management, Getting Things Done, How to Be More Productive

I was reading an article in Information Week appropriately titled, “Eaten by the Email Monster.” http://www.informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2006/08/eaten_by_the_em.html

It links to several useful articles on how to handle information overload. I thought I’d add my thoughts on how to efficiently process email: the 6-D Information Management System™:

1. DISCARD = Delete it

2. DELEGATE = Forward it

3. DO = Reply immediately if it will take you three minutes or less

4. DATE = Needs work but not now. The key is to somehow get it out of your in-box. Pick one favorite method and try to be consistent, so you don’t confuse your brain about what you did with that email. Options:

* Move to a process folder called “Action” or something similar.

* For emails that require action, move (NOT drag, which creates a copy) them to Tasks (or drag to the to-do icon in Lotus) by right-clicking the message and selecting Move to Folder, and then Tasks. A new Task automatically opens and inserts the email into the text portion of the message, which can now be replied to right out of the task). This physically removes the email from your in-box, not just create a copy.

* For time-sensitive emails (meetings or appointments), follow the same procedure above, but select Calendar after you Move to Folder, which will open a new calendar item and automatically move the email message to the text portion of the window.

* If you’d rather work with a paper copy, print the email and file it in your tickler folder. Create a personal folder called @Tickler and drag email there that requires follow-up. When the paper copy (trigger) comes up in your tickler file, you know the original is in your @Tickler folder. That will save you from having to retype the email message when you respond to it.

* Copy the email into the contact’s record in your contact management software (such as ACT or Goldmine) and schedule an activity to follow up.

* Set an email reminder (NOT a calendar reminder or Task reminder) by right-clicking in the flag area (NOT setting a flag) and selecting Add Reminder. Fill in the day and time you want the reminder on the email, and move the email to the proper project folder. You will get a reminder when the email isn’t in your in-box (Outlook 2003).

* Forward it back to yourself, select Options, and check “Don’t deliver before,” fill in a date and send. Delete original.

* Drag to the proper email personal folder, and write a to-do on your paper planning as a cross-reference to remember to do it.

5. DRAWER = If no action is required, but you’d like to keep the email for reference, create a personal folder for the project or reference type and drag the email to the correct folder. Or you could create a Word or other word processing document and save it on your hard drive.

6. DETER = Unsubscribe from email lists and tell your friends to stop sending you their “joke of the day”! Or use the Office Assistant (under “Tools”) or other Rules to automatically moving email from particular people to certain folders (or just delete it then).

I hope this helps! Force yourself to do one of the 6 D’s every singe time you look at a new email. All the email in your in-box will be new, and you will stop re-reading messages over and over. Do a major processing spree like this at least three times a day, but do NOT check them as they are coming in. Turn off the global alerts, set Rules to play for important people, and control your OCD trigger-happy email finger!

Join us on Monday, July 25 at 11:00 AM Mountain for the next webinar in our Microsoft Outlook 2010 series!

Outlook 2010: Time Savers and Efficiency Boosters

Automatic Email Notification, Creating Rules, Rules Wizard, New Item Shortcut, Send/Receive Times, Create Templates for Common Responses, Outlook Template for Letters, AutoSearches, Quickly Jump Around within Outlook, Keyboard Shortcuts, Take a Poll and Tally Results, Specify Which Address Book Opens First, Find Messages with Lightning Speed, Add Groups and Shortcuts in the Folder List, Create a New Toolbar with Favorite Buttons, Add Your Own Menu with Your Favorite Commands.

Join us for this one-hour module for $39, or purchase the entire 12-part series for only $349.

Learn more and place your order today at:
http://www.theproductivitypro.com/s_outlook-virtual-training_1210.html

When I think of productivity tools for the modern business professional, one of the first that comes to mind is Outlook, Microsoft’s insanely useful personal management program. Outlook began life as an email client, and it’s still a great one; but in the past decade, it’s grown into so much more. These days, Outlook is also one of the chief ways that savvy business professionals manage their time and maximize their accessibility, from scheduling their meetings to keeping track of their personal contacts.

This past year we were blessed with a new version, the inventively-named Microsoft Outlook 2010. It’s chockfull of interesting and practical features–some of them completely new, and others refinements of features introduced in earlier versions. In this article, I’ll show you how to best take advantage of a few.

The Ribbon Interface
In Outlook 2007, Microsoft introduced the Ribbon Interface on some Outlook windows, primarily those associated with message views. Now it’s all over the place, including the Inbox itself. As part of the Microsoft Office Fluent User Interface, it’s designed to help you quickly find the commands you need.

As with Word and other Office programs (into which the Ribbon has been integrated long since), related tasks are grouped under tabs; with minor exceptions, menus are history. And here’s something exciting: you can also add customized tabs to your ribbons to enhance your personal work style and thus maximize your productivity.

See the rest of the article here.

Sign up today for Laura’s brand new webinar series for Microsoft Outlook 2010: http://theproductivitypro.com/s_outlook-virtual-training_1210.html

Join Laura Stack, The Productivity Pro(R), and Day-Timer on Monday, March 29 for a one-hour webinar on using Tasks in Microsoft Outlook. We have sessions for both Outlook 2007 and Outlook 2003. The Tasks module is third in a ten-part series on using Outlook effectively.

The classes on March 29 will cover:

Tasks—the Daily To-Do List, Create a New Task, Recurring Tasks, Regenerating Tasks, Remove Completed Tasks from the List, Change the Sort in Your To-Do Bar, Change Preferences, Capture an Email as a Task on the Task Pad, Collapse Your Tasks, Assigning Tasks, View by Person Responsible, Status Updates, Master Categories Lists, Tag with Category, Project Management, View Tasks for by Category/Project, Filter the View, Sort Tasks, Task Options, Paper To-Do Lists, Finding Tasks, Task Folders, Schedule Tasks from Your Calendar.

Sign up for the webinar.

Announcing a public seminar sponsored by the Colorado Human Resources Association (CHRA) and Jobing.com! On March 5, 2010, attend a half day of training on Advanced Tips and Tricks for Microsoft Outlook: Discover Little-Known Tips and Tricks for Managing Your Workflow (morning session 2003, afternoon session 2007). Are you buried by hundreds (or thousands!) of email messages? Do you spend hours every day in your inbox? If you have a hard time keeping up with your email, attend this training with Laura Stack, The Productivity Pro®, a Microsoft Certified Application Specialist (MCAS) in Outlook. She will demonstrate ADVANCED Outlook methods with her actual Outlook software and an LCD projector. This is not simple computer training—it is workflow processing—where you’ll learn to use Outlook to get more work done and increase your performance. Even Outlook “power users” will be amazed by how much they learn. To reduce frustration for all, please do NOT attend if you don’t consider yourself an intermediate to advanced user. We will not learn to create folders, schedule meetings, create email, or do any task that is considered a beginner-level skill. For more information or to register, visit https://m360.chra.org/event.aspx?eventID=14604&instance=0. Register as a Prospective Member if you’re a guest.

 Monthly productivity webinar: February 22, 2010, 1:00 PM Pacific/2:00 PM Mountain/3:00 PM Central/4:00 PM Eastern. “Organizing the Home Office: Setting up Your Space and Systems for Success.” Are you slowly drowning in a sea of paper? Does the sight of your messy office frustrate you? If you’re disorganized, your daily activities won’t run smoothly, and you won’t operate efficiently. Entrepreneurs are so excited by the “fun” activities of their businesses that they dread doing the important foundational work, like setting up systems. You will learn what you’ll need to succeed in business:
• Purchase the right software, hardware, equipment, and accessories.
• Set up your client files, reference files, subject files, and records.
• Organize electronic information, internet, and research data.
• File and retrieve active work-in-progress.

Only $29 per person! (You can still buy the discounted package of all ten: you’ll get a link to the recording of those that have past. For more information and to register, go to http://www.theproductivitypro.com/s_virtual-webinar.htm 

Monthly Microsoft Outlook webinar: February 22, 2010. Inbox/Outbox/Sent Items/Drafts—Remove Attachments, Automatic Formatting, Notes in Messages, “Out Of Office Assistant,” Add Reminders to Flags, Set Reminders for Others, Distribution Lists, Junk Mail List, AutoName, Tag Your Comments, Stationery, Emailing from Another Office Applications, Message Options, Find Related Messages, View Multiple Folders at the Same Time, Resend a Sent Item, Use Sent Items to Set a Reminder, Attach a Previously Sent Item
Outlook version 2003: 9:00 pacific/12:00 eastern
Outlook version 2007: 11:00 pacific/2:00 eastern

http://www.TheProductivityPro.com/outlooktraining.html

Public Seminar in Denver on Tuesday, February 9 from 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM

Advanced Outlook 2007 Tips and Tricks

Discover Little-Known Tips and Tricks for Managing Your Workflow

Are you buried by hundreds (or thousands!) of email messages? Do you spend hours every day in your inbox? If you have a hard time keeping up with your email, attend this critical half day of training with Laura Stack, The Productivity Pro®, a Microsoft Certified Application Specialist (MCAS) in Outlook. Laura helps Microsoft employees understand Outlook (they don’t get it, either)! She will demonstrate ADVANCED Outlook methods with her actual Outlook software and an LCD projector. This is not simple computer training—it is workflow processing—where you’ll learn to use Outlook to get more work done and increase your performance. Even Outlook “power users” will be amazed by how much they learn. To reduce frustration for all, please do NOT attend if you don’t consider yourself an intermediate/advanced user. Laura moves quickly; you might be seriously lost if you’re a beginner. We will not learn to create folders, schedule meetings, create email, or do any task that is considered a beginner-level skill.

For more details or to sign up visit us online: http://theproductivitypro.com/s_publicworkshops.htm

This is your last chance reminder about the upcoming public seminar to be held next week on November 3. Laura Stack is holding two half-day seminars on Advanced Outlook Tips and Tricks. Outlook 2003 will be covered in the morning, and Outlook 2007 will be in the afternoon. Don’t miss this chance to learn high-level workflow processing with Microsoft Outlook. Sign up today for this valuable Outlook training.

To find details on the seminar, visit us online at http://theproductivitypro.com/s_publicworkshops.htm. The half-day seminar is just $99, or if three or more people from the same office attend it’s just $89 per person. We hope to see you there!

If you are unable to attend the live session in Denver, take a look at our Outlook Virtual Training. We offer ten hours of web based training on Outlook which will make you an Outlook power user!

Microsoft Outlook Virtual Training Products:

This isn’t just computer training. It’s real-world, reality-based workflow processing that helps you actually be MORE productive with Outlook, instead of wasting hours every day playing with it. I estimate most people know 10-20% of the capacities of Outlook. Even you Outlook experts will be shocked by what you don’t know you don’t know!

Now you can see a preview of all ten modules from Laura Stack’s Outlook training series! Visit us here to watch the previews and sign up for your training course: http://www.theproductivitypro.com/s_outlook-virtual-training-products.html. Take your office productivity to a whole new level with Outlook!

Please make plans to join me for a public seminar in Denver on November 3 on “Advanced Outlook Tips and Tricks: Discover Little-Known Techniques for Managing Your Workflow.”

 Are you buried by hundreds (or thousands!) of email messages and spend hours every day in your inbox? If you have a hard time keeping up with your email, attend this critical half day of training with me. I’m a Microsoft Certified Application Specialist (MCAS) in Outlook 2003 and 2007. I will demonstrate ADVANCED Outlook methods with my actual Outlook software and an LCD projector. This is not simple computer training—it is workflow processing—where you’ll learn to use Outlook to get more work done and increase your performance. Even Outlook “power users” will be amazed by how much they learn.

NOTE: To reduce frustration for all, please do NOT attend if you don’t consider yourself an intermediate/advanced user. Laura moves quickly; you might be seriously lost if you’re a beginner. We will not learn to create folders, schedule meetings, create email, or do any task that is considered a beginner-level skill.

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Sample Advanced Outlook Workshop Objectives:
• Turn off the global email notification options.
• Play a sound when an “important” person emails you.
• Create signatures to use as templates for common replies.
• Use customized Outlook form templates for letters.
• Use Search Folders as permanent Find searches.
• Take a poll and tally group responses.
• Add groups and shortcuts in the folder list.
• Create new floating toolbars.
• Add your own personalized menu of favorite commands.
• Set a reminder on an email for someone else (babysitting).
• Set an email flag with a date follow up and a pop-up reminder box.
• Automatically forward messages to a distribution list.
• Send a previously Sent Item as an attachment to prove you sent it.
• Use Sent Items to set a reminder to follow up with someone.
• Schedule a recurring or regenerating task (what’s the difference?).
• Remove completed tasks from the TaskPad (no strikeout).
• Capture an email as a task on the TaskPad.
• Assign a Task to someone else and track through completion.
• Use Outlook for project management using Category management.
• Create a new personal or kids’ calendar that isn’t shared.
• Capture an email as a calendar item without copying.
• Block time on your Calendar for Tasks from your TaskPad.
• Display Contacts by category and mail to an entire category.
• Display Contact history (meetings, phone calls, conversations, etc.)
• Create a library with links to documents from a Contact.

Click here for more information or to register

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THIS IS A HALF-DAY WORKSHOP. The morning session is for Microsoft Outlook 2003 users. The afternoon session is for Microsoft Outlook 2007 users.

Workshop Details

Date: Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Times:
Microsoft Outlook 2003 session: Registration: 8:30; Seminar: 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Microsoft Outlook 2007 session: Registration: 12:30; Seminar: 1:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Location: EKS&H Certified Accountants, 7979 E. Tufts Avenue, Denver, CO 80237, 1st floor conference room

Tuition: Your investment for this workshop is $99 per participant (per half day seminar) or $89 when enrolling three or more people from the same company.

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Laura Stack talks about productivity with the Microsoft email program Outlook. Learn how to use signatures and email templates to save time and keystrokes. (C) 2009 Laura Stack. All rights reserved. http://www.TheProductivityPro.com