Tech Tip: Adding Buffer time Between Meetings in Outlook
Do you struggle with back-to-back meetings? Are you suffering from Zoom fatigue? Why not let Outlook help give you and your colleagues a needed break? You can easily adjust Outlook’s calendar settings to shorten the default duration of new appointments/meetings that you schedule. In this example, hour-long meetings will now be scheduled to end in 50 minutes and shorter meetings to end 5 minutes early — providing much-appreciated cushions before upcoming commitments:
And the most important take-away… Changing this setting doesn’t “make it so.” As the meeting scheduler it’s up to you to wrap up your session in less time!
Interested in giving this a try? Here’s how:
- In Outlook 365 for Windows, choose File/Options, then click Calendar at left.
- In (a.k.a. OWA) on Macs and Windows computers, click the gear cog icon (upper right), then search the settings for “Events.”&Բ;
For visual learners, check out this (2:32 min) that explains the “shorten meeting” feature and shows how to adjust your settings.
Here is a summary of Outlook’s “shorten meeting” feature availability:
- Available on Windows computers running Outlook 365 client software.
- Currently unavailable on Mac computers running Outlook 365 client software.
- Available on Mac and Windows computers using Webmail (a.k.a. OWA) from a browser.
- Unavailable on iPhones and Androids running the Outlook app.
If you need a hand or have any questions, please or email helpdesk@middlebury.edu.