Create tasks and to do items

Many people keep a list of things to do — on paper, in a spreadsheet, or by using a combination of paper and electronic methods. In Outlook, you can combine your various lists into one list, enhanced with reminders and tracking.

Create a task

1. Select New Items > Task or press Ctrl+Shift+K.

2. In the Subject box, enter a name for the task. It's best to keep the name short and then add the details in the task body.

3. If there's a fixed start or end date, set the Start date or Due date.

4. Set the task's priority by using Priority.

5. If you want a pop-up reminder, check Reminder, and set the date and time.

6. Click Task > Save & Close.

Create a task from an Outlook item

You can create a task out of any Outlook item, such as e-mail message, contact, calendar item, or note.

Do one of the following:

• Drag an e-mail message to the To-Do Bar

• Drag an item to the Tasks icon in the Navigation Pane.

  Tip:  To add the item as an attachment to a new task instead of pasting the text into the task body, right-click the item and drag it to the task list, and then click Copy Here as Task with Attachment.

Create a task in the To-Do Bar

To create a task in the To-Do Bar, do one of the following:

• In the To-Do Bar, select the Type a new task box, and then enter the task description. Press ENTER to finish. The task appears in your To-Do list with today's date.

• In the To-Do Bar, double-click the Type a new task box to open a new task window. You can enter more detail about the task.

Tip:  To turn on and show Tasks in the To-Do Bar, on the View tab, in the Layout group, select To-Do Bar and select Tasks. For more information about the To-Do Bar, see Use and customize the To-Do bar.