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Scheduling time to complete a task is a problem most HR professionals face daily. You not only have to find time to devote to each task — you also have to determine your priorities and fit all your tasks together efficiently.

In this example, imagine that you receive an e-mail message asking you to come up with design ideas for an internal training Web site. It's a great idea! Employees will be able to find information about training opportunities, job openings, company calendars, benefits, and much more. But, like so many other things, the first obstacle to get around is finding the time to work on it.

Easy as one-two-three

Using Microsoft Office Outlook® 2003, the solution to this problem is a quick, simple three-step process:

1. Use the message to create a task.
2. Assign a priority to the task.
3. Drag the task onto the calendar, blocking out the time necessary to accomplish it.

 Note   This solution requires that the Navigation Pane (Navigation Pane: The column on the left side of the Outlook window that includes panes such as Shortcuts or Mail and the shortcuts or folders within each pane. Click a folder to show the items in the folder.) be displayed, including the Calendar , Mail , and Tasks buttons.

Create a task from an e-mail message

First, use the e-mail message itself to create a task.

1. Click Mail in the Navigation Pane to display e-mail messages.
2. Select the message about design ideas for the Web site.
3. Drag the message to the Tasks button in the Navigation Pane. A task window opens, with the message header and text automatically inserted in the task window text box.

    Note   The information is copied into the task window, but the original e-mail message is not deleted or moved from its original location.

4. In the task window, select options on the Task tab and the Details tab.
5. Click Save and Close.

Prioritize and sort tasks

Next, prioritize your tasks and sort them in order of priority.

Set priority levels for your tasks

By default, tasks have a Normal priority level, but you can change the level to Low or High.

1. Click Tasks in the Navigation Pane to display the Tasks list.
2. Double-click the task to open it.
3. In the Priority box, click the High priority level so this task gets top attention.
4. Click Save and Close.

Sort tasks in priority order

1. Click Tasks in the Navigation Pane to display the Tasks list.
2. On the View menu, point to Arrange By, and then click Importance.

Schedule time to complete the task

Finally, block out time to work on the task.

1. Click Calendar in the Navigation Pane to display the calendar.
2. On the Calendar toolbar, click Day or Work Week to open the calendar.
3. On the View menu, click TaskPad to open the TaskPad next to the calendar.
4. In the calendar, select the period of time you want to allot to your task. For example, if you need a three-hour block of time to devote to your Web site design, that's how much you should select.
5. Drag the task from the TaskPad onto the calendar. The Appointment window opens.
6. In the Appointment window, the date and time that you selected are already entered. You can also add more notes and details.
7. Click Save and Close.

Now, a quick glance at your calendar shows that you're busy. Moreover, if someone sends a meeting request for that time, it will be clear that you're unavailable.

A great start toward completing that new project

Outlook made it easy to create a task, assign it a priority, and block out the time necessary to accomplish it. That's the kind of planning and preparation that lead to success.