I use Gmail in combination with Apple’s Mail program. I don’t use folders at all in Gmail which I use mostly for remote access and to filter spam. If gmail starts to get full, I just start purging. I think I’ve done that twice in the last few years.

I keep all of my Apple Mail Inbox intact during the year except for business receipts which I place in a Mailbox marked {Year] Business Receipts. Once the year is over I place the remaining items from that year into a Mailbox marked [Year}. I usually don’t get around to that until the end of the first quarter, so the last three months are always available in my Inbox.

To find something, I use Apple Mail’s search facility which is pretty much instantaneous – great when I’m on the phone with an old client I haven’t heard from in a while. I can search my Inbox or one of my archive Mailboxes or everything, and I can refine my search by restricting the search to From, Subject or Entire Message.

I also use the column headers to sort messages by From or To, Date Received or Sent, and Subject in either ascending or descending order. Normally I keep them in date received order.

My Inbox only has four column headers: Flag, From, Subject and Date Received, while my Sent box only has three: To, Subject and Date Sent.

I have never felt the need to tag or label anything, although I do Flag any item coming in that requires some action on my part that I can’t perform immediately. When the task is completed, I remove the flag.