TDS

Six ways to manage your email account

Flickr—Mr Popular

Flickr—Mr Popular

Email is a great tool to have, but sometimes it can become overwhelming. In light of TDS switching email platforms, here are some tips to use this fresh start to de-stress and simplify your email:

    1.Unsubscribe from promotional emails you don’t want or really need. This will save you time you would have used to filter through spam and delete items. There are services out there to help you focus on the important stuff, such as unroll.me.

    2. Mark/star important emails. If certain emails carry more weight or importance than others, mark them as such. This will remind you of their salience and help you find them even easier when you need them.

    3. Delete emails you know you won’t need again. Get rid of extra clutter in your accounts by deleting emails you will probably never need again. Unless you’re sure you’ll go back to it, delete it. You’ll be glad you did.

    4. Set up daily time(s) to check in with your email/reply. Take the stress of your inbox off your mind by setting up specific times to carry out your email responsibilities. This way you can get done what you need to and then stop thinking about it until you are scheduled to check it next.

    5. Reply to emails that require a reply right away. Chances are if you don’t reply to an email right away, you’ll either forget or it will build up and make for a more stressful situation later on. Avoid both of these scenarios and promptly reply when you receive it.

    6. Sort emails into folders. The more organized you keep your inbox, the easier it will be to find the information you need. This will also force you to consider what’s worth keeping around and categorizing.

    Email conversion create folder_arrowTo create a new folder in the TDS web email interface, click on the gear icon to the right of the Folders menu. A drop-down menu will appear and the first option is to create a new folder. Give the folder a name, and select where you’d like to place it (witin your Inbox, most likely) and you’re good to go!

A perk of TDS’ email service that will help everyone out is that after 90 days, unread email that is not filed into a folder will automatically be deleted. This way, your inbox will be cleared automatically of email that you clearly don’t need or want.

Do you have any good email management strategies? Share them in the comments.

 
 

Guest blogger: Luke Brooks
Luke_Brooks
Luke is the intern for the Corporate Communications team at TDS and does a lot more than brew coffee and make copies. He is called on for anything from press releases to multimedia projects. Luke is a senior at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, majoring in Communication Arts and Journalism and Mass Communication. His strongest passions are movies and sports

About Guest Blogger

Guest blogger for TDS Home.

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30 Responses to Six ways to manage your email account

  1. Verlee January 30, 2015 at 4:36 pm #

    How do you spellcheck Email?

    • Missy February 3, 2015 at 9:38 am #

      Verlee, the new system spell checks as you go, but there is also a button in the compose screen (it has ABC and a check mark on it) you can use to spell check.

  2. joyce zabo February 2, 2015 at 11:13 am #

    How do I avoid an e-mail from opening AUTOMATICALLY after deleting one from either the folder or one opened? This lends itself to ‘viruses” from opening

    • Missy February 3, 2015 at 9:43 am #

      Joyce, I spoke with someone here who verified that the preview pane is not really opening the email. He said, “someone would have to download an attached file or click on a link” to end up with a virus. If you have any other concerns feel free to reach out to our repair team for help. You can contact them at 1-888-225-5837 or chat at http://www.tdstelecom.com/chat.

  3. James Newkirk February 2, 2015 at 1:06 pm #

    I get EVERYTHING in my inbox now, spam, facebook, ect. How can I get these to go to spam or junk?

  4. Ann February 4, 2015 at 10:48 am #

    Is there any way to disengage the calendar setting which automatically displays all days/dates in blue ink? I really don’t want that feature in my outgoing/incoming emails. Thanks.

    • Rich F November 3, 2015 at 9:53 pm #

      I want to know the same thing! It’s very irritating.

  5. Teresa February 10, 2015 at 8:46 am #

    Why can’t you sort by “From” ??

    • Missy February 10, 2015 at 9:41 am #

      Teresa, that’s a good question. You actually can, but you have to change how you’re viewing your mail. By default, the system shows a preview window on the side which collapses the “From” column so you can’t sort. BUT, if you go to the upper right corner of the task bar you’ll see a “View” option. Select the “Reading Pane At Bottom” or “Reading Pane Off” from that drop down menu and you’ll now see the “From” column (and can sort accordingly!).

  6. Terrie February 14, 2015 at 1:36 pm #

    Can’t sort by “from” even though I have the reading pane off. Clicking “from” doesn’t sort the list alphabetically, which is what I need to organize the list. Are we missing an important step here?

    • Missy February 16, 2015 at 8:07 am #

      Terrie–you aren’t missing something. I just contacted a member of our conversion team who confirmed this should be working–this column *should* be sortable. He has already contacted our vendor about getting this fixed. Thank you for reaching out and for your patience!

    • Missy February 16, 2015 at 9:34 am #

      Wait! We just got another tip. To sort by From you need to be viewing your email by message, not by conversation. If you switch that you WILL, in fact, be able to sort by the sender of the email.

  7. Diane January 14, 2016 at 9:41 am #

    how do i add contact to my contact list if I haven’t received email from them yet

  8. Dick Herrin August 30, 2016 at 7:27 pm #

    How do I get rid of Google Ads from my email inbox?

  9. Bonnie Davenport February 3, 2017 at 8:43 am #

    I have many duplicate names in my computer of people who have changed there address… How do I remove the names that are obsolete. I seem to always pick the wrong one and can’t find the location to clean my address list. Some are even deceased and I’d like to remove them

    • Missy Kellor February 6, 2017 at 11:12 am #

      Bonnie, the answer will depend on whether you’re using an email client (like Outlook or Thunderbird) to check your TDS email, or if you’re checking your email at tds.net. If you use an email client, I’m afraid I can’t answer your question. However, I can tell you how to delete contacts if you check your email online :-). In the web interface there’s an Address Book tab to the right of the Mail tab (just below the TDS logo). When you click Address Book you’ll see a list of contacts. To delete any contact, click on the box to the left of their name and choose “Delete” from the menu above.

  10. Joanne Reich May 19, 2017 at 3:16 pm #

    How to delete numerous emails . I can do search to find a a group of email but how do I delete a whole group without doing it individually?

    • Missy Kellor May 19, 2017 at 4:31 pm #

      Joanne, take a look at the very top of the column where you would individually check emails you want to delete. If you click the checkbox there (the one to the left of the flag icon), it will automatically select all of the emails below for deletion. I hope this helps!

      • Beth Hellenbrand April 18, 2019 at 12:34 pm #

        I have lost the checkbox to the left of flag icon to delete numerous letters at one time. How do I get the little box to reapear. I had it happen before and someone helped me. Now I have called and no one has been able to help me. Please help!
        Beth Hellenbrand 4/18/19

        • Missy Kellor April 18, 2019 at 4:12 pm #

          Hi Beth!

          I did some experimenting with my own personal account (I’m a customer, too!) and think I have the answer. If you’re working from the online interface, and not using an email client, click on the Preferences bar at the top. Scroll down to the Other section and you’ll see a setting that says: “Display checkboxes to quickly select items in lists (requires refresh)” Make sure that box is selected, go back to your email and you’ll be asked whether to save the settings. Say Yes, then refresh your page, and you’ll be good to go!

          If this doesn’t solve your problem, do let me know.

  11. Miranda Young June 1, 2017 at 10:07 am #

    How do I delete all of my emails at once…I have like 30,000 and I want to delete them all…I have spent an hour trying to figure it out…it really shouldn’t be that hard.

    • Missy Kellor June 1, 2017 at 1:59 pm #

      Hi Miranda,

      There is an easy way (assuming you’re using the web interface). Go to the very top of the checkbox column — there’s another checkbox up there at the top, to the left of the flag icon. If you click that one on top, it will select ALL the email below and you can delete in one big batch :-).

  12. MC September 14, 2018 at 8:49 pm #

    I can’t see my folders because there is an advertisement covering them that I can’t get rid of. Any advice?

    • Missy Kellor September 17, 2018 at 11:39 am #

      Hi MC, I reached out to our product experts and they’re telling me that, without knowing the details, it’s probably either a zoom issue or the resolution you’re using to view your email. If you call our help desk (1-888-225-5837), they can troubleshoot with you and help find a solution so you can actually see all your folders :-).

  13. Jolynn January 5, 2019 at 9:21 am #

    Is there way ro creat an email template? For example, an invoice template that a business owner could use to email invoices to customers?

    • Missy Kellor January 7, 2019 at 2:29 pm #

      I’m sure there are ways, but it would depend on which email service you’re using. I did a quick internet search and it looks like you can create templates in Outlook, Gmail, and others (and it looks like QuickBooks might also let you create an invoice template, if you use that particular accounting software). I’d do a little Googling and see what’s possible for the program(s) you use.

  14. Ed September 30, 2020 at 9:40 pm #

    How to enlarge font in email reading pane…..and make the font bolder……….old eyes here!!

    • Missy Kellor October 1, 2020 at 5:13 pm #

      A lot may depend on what email client you’re using, and how your monitor/phone is set up (I feel your pain). If you need help troubleshooting viewing your email on the tds.net portal, our repair team can help troubleshoot with you at 1-888-225-5837. Otherwise, I’d do a little Googling about how to increase the font display size on the program or computer/phone you use.

Trackbacks/Pingbacks

  1. Cleaning your computer: The inside | TDS Home - March 24, 2016

    […] Tame your inbox. If you’re like most people, keeping up with email can be a challenge. How can you make it easier? Start by unsubscribing from promotional email lists you don’t want or need. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by that idea, there are services out there to help make it a snap such as unroll.me and OtherInbox you might want to check out. And, for more email management hints, tips, and how-to’s, check out this blog. […]

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