How to Use OneNote With Your Outlook Calendar

If
you're like most of us, a lot of your important tasks and notes arrive via
email. You've been using your Microsoft Calendar and To-Do-List to keep track
of your tasks, but you want to do more. 

Most
people don't realize that you can use MS OneNote as an Outlook task manager
with the Outlook Calendar To-Do-List tools. By adding OneNote to MS Outlook,
you can not only track your tasks, you can also keep track of other information
that arrives by email in handy notebooks with tabs. There are even OneNote collaboration
features you can use to share your information with others.

In this tutorial, we'll show you how to activate the OneNote
feature in MS Outlook. We'll also show you how to use OneNote to effectively manage
your tasks and notes. We’ll share how MS Outlook can help you store and
organize your incoming email messages. Finally, we'll share a cool hack for
using MS OneNote along with the Outlook calendar to take meeting minutes and
distribute them to meeting participants. 

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In this tutorial, you'll be learning how to use OneNote and Outlook for project management tasks. You can get even more control over your projects by learning how to manage your email inbox, so be sure to grab our Free eBook: The Ultimate Guide to Inbox Zero Mastery. It's packed with inbox
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Now let's move on to our tutorial on how to use Microsoft Outlook with OneNote.

What
Is Microsoft OneNote?

MS
OneNote is a notetaking/to-do-list tool that comes as a part of MS Office
suite. It allows you to organize and store information as well as keep track of
meetings and tasks. When you were in school you may have used a notebook with
tabs to keep your papers organized. OneNote works much the same way, except
your notebook is now virtual and your tabs are called sections.

OneNote
is integrated into MS Outlook and you can use it along with your MS Outlook
Calendar and To Do List. It can also be integrated into other software
productivity apps. OneNote also includes peer collaboration tools.

To
learn even more about Microsoft OneNote basics, here are some tutorials: 

• Office
  
  
  Getting Started with Microsoft OneNote
  
  
  Matthew Guay


• OneNote
  
  
  OneNote GTD: Productivity with Freeform Notes
  
  
  Bob Flisser


• Evernote
  
  
  8 Best Note-Taking Apps: Evernote, OneNote, & Alternatives
  
  
  Harry Guinness

How to Activate MS OneNote

Now
that you’ve learned what MS OneNote is, you’re ready to start using it. Before
you can start using, the MS OneNote Add-in, you need to make sure it’s enabled.
If OneNote is enabled, you’ll see a OneNote icon
on the ribbon when the Home tab
is selected:

If OneNote isn’t active in your version of Outlook, you’ll
need to active it. Here’s what to do

Step 1. Access the Outlook Options Window

Start
with your Outlook email inbox open. Click the File tab. The Account
Information window appears:

Click Options on the left. The Outlook Options window appears:

Step 2. Change OneNote to Active Status

Click the Add-ins
option on the left. On the View and
manage Microsoft Office Add-ins window you’ll see lists of active,
inactive, and disabled application add-ins:

If
OneNote is on the Inactive Applications
Add-In list, select COM Add-ins
next to Manage at the bottom of the
screen. Then, click the Go button. The Com
Add-Ins dialog box appears:

Check
the checkbox next to OneNote Notes about
Outlook items to activate it, then click OK.
The system returns to your inbox. You should now see the OneNote icon on the ribbon when the Home tab is selected.

How to Create Outlook Tasks in OneNote

Once you’ve activated OneNote, you can use it as an Outlook task manager by creating tasks in Outlook and saving them to OneNote or creating tasks in OneNote and saving them to Outlook. Let’s get started!

The first thing you’ll want to do is open OneNote on your
desktop:

As
you can see, I’ve already added a Notebook called Project XYZ to
OneNote for us to work with. I also 
added some Sections (sometimes called folders) to the notebook. The sections I added are called Meetings, Minutes, Correspondence, and Tasks. On
the right, you’ll see a place for a list of Pages in the section that’s
currently open—it's
the green section. (There
aren’t any pages on the list yet because we haven’t created them.)

Create
and name your own notebooks and sections according to your organizational
needs.

1.
Use OneNote to Add a New Task to Your Outlook Tasks List

You
can add a task to your Outlook To-Do-List from OneNote. Here's how:

Step 1. Open Your Notebook Section and Add a Task

Start by opening the appropriate section in the correct notebook. In this case,
I’ll start with the Tasks section
open in the Project XYZ folder. (I’ve
already added a pre-existing task called File the XYZ
Project Paperwork to this section. You can see it on the page list to the
right.)

Click the checkbox next the To Do Tag
icon in the ribbon. A checkbox, representing a new task, appears on a blank
page in the section you’ve got open.

Step 2. Type the Task Description

Type a description of the task in the blank space next to the checkbox. 

Step 3. Schedule the Task and Add Details

When
you’ve finished, click Outlook Tasks
icon in the ribbon. From the drop-down
menu, pick a timeframe for when you want to add the task to the Outlook tasks
list. To schedule a specific date, select the Custom option. The Outlook New
Task window displays:

Now it's time to fill out the task details:

• Use the Start date
  and Due date fields to schedule the
  task. 


• Describe the importance of the task using the Priority field (choose between Low, Normal, and High).


• Use
  the Reminder checkbox to have
  Outlook remind you about the task.


• Define the importance of the task using the Priority field.
  
  

When you're done filling out the New Task window, close
it by clicking the X in the upper right corner of the window. Be sure to save
your changes when Outlook prompts you to do so.

Step 4. View the Task in Outlook

To see the task you just created in OneNote, open your MS Outlook task list. You’ll see
the task you just created on the task list. The details appear in the pane to
the right:

You can now work with the task in Outlook just like you
would any task you created using Outlook’s task tools if you like. For more
details on working with the New Task
window, review this tutorial:

• Microsoft Outlook
  
  
  MS Outlook Calendar: How to Add, Share, & Use It Right
  
  
  Laura Spencer

2. Add an Outlook Task to OneNote

Use OneNote as an Outlook task manager by saving tasks that are created in Outlook to
OneNote. Here’s what to do:

Step 1. Open Your Outlook To-Do-List and Select a Task

Start with your email inbox open and open your To-Do-List. (Click on the More icon at the bottom of the Navigation panel and select Tasks from the pop-up menu.)

Select a task that you’ve created in Outlook from the list. For our example,
I’ve created a task called Attend
Training Seminar in MS Outlook:

Double-click on the task you created in Outlook to open it. 

Step 2. Send the Task to OneNote

Click on the OneNote
icon in the ribbon to send the task to OneNote. The Select Location in OneNote dialog box displays:

Click on a notebook to choose one of the sections inside or make a choice from
the Recent Picks list. When you’ve
chosen a location, click the OK
button and close the open task.

Step 3. View the Outlook Task in OneNote

To see your task in OneNote, open the notebook and section where you stored that
task. Click on the task name in the page list on the right to open the page
containing the task you just created:

How to Save an Outlook Email to OneNote 

You can save an email to OneNote where you can make notes on
it, scheduled tasks based on it, and more. 

Step 1. Select an Email to Send to OneNote

Start with your email inbox open. Select the message or messages you want to
save to OneNote:

Step 2. Send the Email to OneNote

Click the OneNote icon in the ribbon
to send the selected message to OneNote. The Select Location in OneNote dialog box displays:

Click on the location where you want to store the email and then click OK. OneNote opens a new page with your
email on it in the notebook and section you chose:

How to Use OneNote to Find a Task or Message

Once you get into the habit of using OneNote to store
information, your notebooks might start to get full. You might worry that you
won’t be able to find what you’re looking for. But OneNote has a pretty
helpful search tool. Let’s take a closer look.

Step 1. Open OneNote and Find the Search Tool

Start by opening OneNote:

Step 2. Type the Search Phrase

I want to find the email I just saved to OneNote, but I can’t remember where I
put it. I do know that it contains the words “thank-you,” so I type those words
into the Search tool and press the Enter key when I’m done. The Search tool takes me directly to the
OneNote page where I saved the email:

How to Use OneNote With Meetings

You can save time on your project management tasks by automating the meeting minute process.
You can connect a meeting you’ve got on your Outlook calendar, take notes on
that meeting, and email those notes to the other people who attended the meeting
when the meeting is over.

Let’s learn how:

Step 1. Open Your Outlook Calendar

Start by opening your MS Outlook calendar:

For more information on how to use the Microsoft Outlook Calendar tool, review this tutorial:

• Microsoft Outlook
  
  
  MS Outlook Calendar: How to Add, Share, & Use It Right
  
  
  Laura Spencer

Step 2. Add a Meeting to OneNote

Find
the meeting you want to add to OneNote and double-click on it to open the Invited Event window. In this case we’re going to open the Computer Training on New Software
meeting that I set up as an example:

Once
the Invited Event window is open,
connect it to OneNote by clicking the OneNote
icon in the ribbon. Notice that it says Meeting
Notes Meeting. A dialog box appears asking whether you want to Share notes with the meeting or Take notes on your own:

Choose one of the following:

• To
  share the meeting minutes in shared notebook, select the Share notes with the meeting option. Note: you must have a shared OneNote notebook already set up to select this
  option.
  


• To
  take your own notes privately, select the Take
  notes on your own option. These notes will only exist in your private
  notebook until you share them through email. This is the option we're going to use for this
  example.
  
  

Select the Take
notes on your own option. The Select
Location in OneNote dialog box appears:

Step 3. Take Notes in OneNote

Click
on a notebook to choose one of the sections inside or make a choice from the Recent Picks list. When you’ve chosen a
location, click the OK button and
close the open meeting. A new page containing your meeting information opens in
the OneNote section and notebook you just selected:

Take notes on the open page in OneNote beneath the Notes heading.

Step 4. Distribute the Meeting Notes With Outlook

When the meeting is over you can share your notes with
everyone who attended the meeting by clicking on the Email Page icon in the
ribbon:

An Outlook message opens with the meeting information and
attendees at the top and your notes at the bottom:

When
you’re ready, click the Send button
on the left to send the meeting notes to the meeting attendees. 

Learn More About How to Use Email Effectively

Whether
you're a business owner or a business professional, email is an important
communications tool. It's important to make sure your emails are as
professional as possible. These tutorials can help:

• Email
  
  
  How to Write a More Effective Email (15+ Best Tips & Tricks)
  
  
  Laura Spencer


• Email
  
  
  How to Properly Write a Formal Email (That Gets Results)
  
  
  Laura Spencer


• Email
  
  
  17 Professional Email Tips for Better Results in 2017
  
  
  Laura Spencer

More Helpful Email Tips and Strategies

Don't forget to sign up to the Tuts+ Business newsletter and grab our free eBook: The Ultimate Guide to Inbox Zero Mastery. It's packed with inbox organization strategies and killer tips for managing all your incoming email more efficiently.

Conclusion

As you can see, OneNote and Outlook together can handle a
lot of project management tasks. Using these tools together can help you work more effectively. You’ve just learned how to activate MS OneNote and use it in
combination with Microsoft Outlook to organize your Outlook email, Outlook tasks,
meetings, and other information.

You’ve also discovered how to use OneNote as an Outlook task manager. I’ve explained how to save email to OneNote
folders. Plus, we’ve gone over a cool timesaving tip
for storing meeting information to OneNote and using OneNote to both take
meeting minutes and distribute those meeting minutes to meeting participants.

Do you use OneNote and Outlook together? If
so, what OneNote productivity tips do you have related to using the tools for project management tasks? Share your answers in the comments
below.