For example, I have a folder for every major project I'm working on. OutlookPower has a deadline each month, so I have one called OutlookPower, into which I file general correspondence. I also have a folder for each month (for example, 05-2006 OutlookPower) into which I store information related to that month's issue. Outlook allows you to place folders within folders, so I could easily put all my issue-related folders inside one master folder.

I have a Pending folder that prevents me from forgetting to follow up on anything important. I have a folder for each employee I manage, their projects, and their status reports. I have one for company updates and correspondence with David. I even have a Humor folder for the funny email I get from people and a Personal folder for email from family and friends. Getting all that humor mail is no longer funny, so I'm seriously thinking of just filtering it all into my Deleted Items folder.

Keep in mind that you can always use Outlook's Search functions (and even the free Microsoft Lookout tool) to help you locate information if you don't remember where you filed it.

Here's a privacy tip: Don't leave Outlook open on your desktop if your folders contain information that you want to keep private and inaccessible to others.

Filing mail in a folder
To file mail in a folder, open a piece of mail in your inbox, send a reply if needed, and click the Send button. Outlook will send the message, returning you to your inbox and highlighting the message you just replied to. All you have to do is drag the message into a folder. Note that the item has disappeared from your inbox because Outlook has stored it in the folder you selected.

After you drag the item into a folder, you might discover that you don't have an appropriate folder for storing your mail. If this happens, you can always create a new folder. Outlook will automatically alphabetize the new folder. Drag the message to that folder, and Outlook will store your message there.

David Gewirtz is the author of How To Save Jobs and Where Have All The Emails Gone? For more than 20 years, he has analyzed current, historical, and emerging issues relating to technology, competitiveness, and policy. David is the Editor-in-Chief of the ZATZ magazines, is the Cyberterrorism Advisor for the International Association for Counterterrorism and Security Professionals, and is a member of the instructional faculty at the University of California, Berkeley extension. He can be reached at david@zatz.com and you can follow him at http://www.twitter.com/DavidGewirtz.