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Quick Microsoft Outlook Tutorial- How to Efficiently Organize your Inbox
»Color code with automatic formatting
| Color code messages |
- Select one message from the person whose messages you'd like to see in a different color.
- On the Tools menu, click Organize to display the Organize pane.
- In the Organize pane, click Using Colors.
- In the first bulleted item, you should see the words From and the name of the person who sent you the message. Then you should see the word in and a drop-down list box.
- Click the box to select a color (or keep the default).
- Click Apply Color.
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| Turn off color coding, change the color, or delete the color coding rule |
- In the upper-right corner of the Organize pane, click Automatic Formatting.
Note This button is available only when Using Colors is selected in the left portion of the Organize pane.
- In the Automatic Formatting dialog box, select the rule you want to turn off, change, or delete, and then do one of the following:
- To turn off the rule, clear the check box for the rule, and click OK.
- To change the color, click the Font button under Properties of selected rule. In the Font dialog box, select the new color and click OK twice.
- To delete the selected rule, click the Delete button, and click OK.
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| Add flags to messages |
When you're looking at a list of messages
Right-click the Flag Status column  for the message and click the flag that you want to use.
If you don't see the Flag Status column , you may be using a custom view. To see Flag Status, you'll need to reset your current view. To do this, click the Arranged By heading at the top of the list of messages and click Custom. Click the Reset Current View button.
When you're looking at a single, open message
Attach a flag by clicking the Follow Up button  on the Standard toolbar. Click the Flag Type drop-down box, select the desired flag color, and click OK. |
| Add a reminder |
- Right-click the Flag Status column and click Add Reminder.
The Flag for Follow Up dialog box is displayed.
- Select a date by clicking the Due by drop-down arrow. You can specify a time in the next box to the right.
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| Sort messages according to their flags |
On the View menu, point to Arrange By and click Flag.
Note - In this arrangement, a message with a follow-up flag that was added by the sender will appear at the top of the Unflagged category. To sort the message along with those you have set flags for, right-click its Flag Status column and select a flag. |
| Create and use a folder |
Note that you can create folders anywhere in the Navigation Pane, not just in the Inbox.
- To create a folder in your Inbox, do either of the following:
- Right-click Inbox and click New Folder on the shortcut menu.
- Point to New on the File menu and click Folder.
- In the Name box, type the name for the new folder. Verify that Mail and Post Items is selected in the Folder contains box, and that Inbox is selected in the Select where to place the folder box. Click OK.
- To move a message into a folder, drag it to the folder or right-click it and click Move to Folder.
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| See the contents of built-in Search Folders |
- In the Navigation Pane, under All Mail Folders, click the plus sign next to Search Folders.
- Click a specific Search Folder to reveal its contents.
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| Create your own Search Folder |
- On the File menu, point to New, and click Search Folder.
- In the New Search Folder dialog box, select the Search Folder type you want, customize the folder, and click OK.
- To see the results, look toward the bottom of the Folder List in the Navigation Pane, and click the plus sign next to Search Folders.
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| Add a folder to the Favorite Folders pane |
Drag a folder to the Favorite Folders pane of the Navigation Pane, or right-click a folder, and click Add to Favorite Folders.
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| Remove a folder from the Favorite Folders pane |
In the Favorite Folders pane, right-click the folder and click Remove from Favorite Folders.
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»Find it fast with arrangements
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Switch between arrangements
Depending on how your messages are being displayed, you can use the Arranged By shortcut menu shown here. Or, point to Arrange By on the View menu, and click the arrangement that you'd like to switch to.
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Change the sort order of an arrangement
Click the top of the list of messages. For example, if you're looking at messages arranged by subject, click A on top. The message order changes to Z on top, so that subjects are now ordered from Z to A.
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Show or hide a conversation
Show the whole conversation by clicking the arrow at the top of a conversation.
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*For a more detailed tutorial on how to organize your inbox visit:
Microsoft Online Training- Outlook Organization
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