Are you suffering from Email overload? Perhaps your Inbox is overflowing with unread messages or it may be that you can't find anything. Remember all those management theories? Well the principles of paper management apply here too.

In this resource I'll be using Microsoft Outlook as an example when listing tips, tricks or instructions, but most programs will have the features listed. Use the HELP function in your email program if you're not sure about how some of the features work.

Try to handle your emails just once to:

1. Action it (which is usually to reply)
2. File it (in your folders)
3. Bin it (the delete button is REALLY handy) or,
4. Schedule it (scheduling may mean using your email program's calendar to book a meeting or listing a task for yourself)

Ways to ease the pain...

Sort
Sorting is easy and helps when finding email or when deleting email. For example you may want to sort by the sender to find all related items or sort by the date to see what is most current. In Outlook, simply click once on the heading you wish to sort by. (If selecting by the date, clicking on the date heading again will reverse the order).

Save it where you can find it
Electronic filing follows the same principles as paper filing but is much easier. Make some folders for yourself with meaningful names under "saved" items. It works best when you are in the habit of deleting or filing as you go.

Remember also to save all "Sent" items you want in folders as well as items from the Inbox. In Outlook:

Highlight the Saved Mail heading.

Right mouse click and choose New Folder

Name it. You can drag any mail you want from the In or Sent folders to it.

Display
Display your email in a way that is easiest for you. Several options are available in Outlook under the "View" menu. Here are some of the more popular display options:

To have each item listing in the "in" box with the full message displayed at the bottom when an item is highlighted, select "View" and then "Preview Pane".

To view the first few lines of every item on display, select "View" and then "Auto Preview".

Going away from the office?
In Outlook, use the "out of office" facility so senders will be notified and will not expect a response. You can also use "Rules" to assist in the handling of incoming mail. For example you can have all your mail forwarded to another address or specify mail from particular senders. Both "Out of Office Assistant" and "Rules Wizard" are under the "Tools" menu.

Mail arriving all day?
Checking mail does not need to be an all day event. It is recommended by some to check your email intermittently rather than accessing it all day. It is best practice to check it in the morning and then at times that suit, for example late morning or after lunch and then once before finishing, the idea being to allow some productive uninterrupted time for other work throughout the day.

Say "no" to junk mail
Don't get spammed. Spamming is when you (and hundreds or thousands of others) receive messages in bulk. Don't reply to these as this will confirm your address and in turn you will receive more of the same. Delete them on arrival.

Be careful who you give your Email address to, so as to avoid unwanted promotional material. If you are inundated, in Outlook you may want to use the "Junk Mail" facility under "Tools" and then "Organise".

Running out of space?
If you are receiving system generated messages that your mailbox is over its size limit then you are out of space. You can do a few things to help:

Delete unnecessary mail. Don't forget the "Sent items" and the "Saved" folders as well as the "Inbox". They all count.

Empty deleted mail. When you delete mail it actually remains in the delete box until cleared, which is handy if you need to retrieve it again, but a pain if you need the space. You can do this immediately via "Tools" and then "Empty deleted items" folder.

Empty deleted mail when exiting. Go to "Tools", "Options" and then tick "Empty the deleted items folder upon exiting".

Archiving mail should be set so that mail before a date your determine is automatically stored on your 'C' drive in a more compact format.

Save to your C: drive. This is an option as well. For example you may want to take whole sections of sent files to the hard drive. Obviously this mail will only be accessible on the PC you save to.

Attachments. They take up lots of space but can be saved as computer files. Highlight the message (with the paperclip symbol) and select "File" and then "Save attachments".

If you are still running out of space phone your local Help Desk (if you work for a large organisation) and request more space be made available on the servers for your Email.

If all else fails, delete every 7th email and see if the sun comes up tomorrow. (Just kidding...)

Now on another note...

Beware the virus
Remember the Melissa virus? Or how about the 'I love you' virus? Both of these flooded the email systems, but some bugs can do even more damage.

Opening Email attachments transmits most viruses. Be wary of opening any attachments from unknown sources. Many Email viruses propagate to all users you sent to and multiply causing blockages and serious slowdowns. Some are far more insidious and can corrupt important files on your PC.

If working on networks within a large organisation or intranet, you will already be covered to some extent by virus protection software. It is important to minimise infection by taking notice of warnings regarding current viruses from our computer support people.

Staff in many schools and government departments are allowed to use VET antivirus software at home. Check with your local Help Desk to see if this option is available to you.

Writing personal emails at work
Are you allowed those personal Emails at work? Well, yes you are usually allowed "moderate" use in most organisations, and many will have formal policies governing email usage. Find out exactly what is acceptable use of email in your workplace by contacting your local Webmaster or Help Desk.

What else can I do?
Most email software programs can do much more than just deal with email. For instance, Outlook includes the following features:

"Contacts" and "Personal Directory" makes life much easier when needing to contact the same people or groups regularly

"Calendar" is a really useful tool especially for groups needing to meet and know where the rest of the team is.

"Tasks" assists in organising and prioritising your work.

The Outlook Help function contains information on these features. Most emails will also contain help pages and information.

Happy emailing!