Why does Auto-Mate hang Outlook while executing rules?

Since Auto-Mate is an Outlook add-in, Microsoft forces developers to make Outlook add-ins run in the same thread of execution as Outlook. So it will hang the main Outlook thread while processing rules.

Please try to keep the number of messages in the folders it scans smaller in size and change the rules to "Scan after a period of time in a folder" instead of immediately upon sending or receiving messages. This will distribute the rule load more evenly and cause less repetitive rule processing.

You can also use the scheduling tab (Pro version only) to force the rules to run only during off peak hours. Finally, there's an option to process rules only when Outlook is minimized. That can also help with eliminate hanging during interactive use of Outlook.