I have been in business and (not surprisingly) using email for over 10 years. Let me assure you, I have participated in libraries-worth of email in that time. I necessarily make good use of email message folders in Microsoft Outlook and have found a useful way to organize things (perhaps a good topic for a future blog post). My idea to share with you today, is that the new year is a good time to “start fresh” with a fresh set of email folders.

So instead of forever continuing to just use the same mass of folders, I create a new root folder at the beginning of every year. Usually your folders are listed alphabetically, so to list the new folder at the top, I’ll prefix the name of the folder with “01 – {year}” and renumber the prefix of the older folders from years past. I typically keep two or three years open within Outlook and archive anything older. So this Outlook tip has the added benefit of lightening the load on your email infrastructure.

How to create an email folder?

1. At the bottom of the folder pane, select New folder.
2. In the new folder box, enter a name for the folder and then press Enter. When you create a new folder, it is added in alphabetical order below the Archive folder.

I find that doing this email organization at the beginning of a new year, I get the mental benefit of starting fresh too. A sense of renewal. A clean slate. After all, staying organized helps one stay productive.

Give it a try and let me know what you think. If you have questions about best practices for your Outlook, reach out to us.