Organize Your Desktop and Be MORE Productive
- Saturday, October 3, 2009
Category: Time Management
Does your desktop look like one big mess of folders? If you find yourself wasting time in search of a file that’s lost somewhere on your desktop, maybe its time to adopt a different style of organization. A simple system can save you precious time, and take the edge off a busy day.
I am still amazed when I visit my clients and get a glimpse of their files. In the old days, I could automatically see if clients were working in an unorganized way. They would have paper files piled all over their desks, on the floor and on every flat surface. Today, its a little harder to notice work clutter until you see their computer. I have seen clients with thousands of emails, and files that cover most of the desktop space. Needless to say, an unorganized day is not as productive and billable as an organized one. Start small and work your way up to a highly productive day.
Begin by creating 5 basic folders:
1. Inbox: Put unprocessed items that don’t have a place yet in here. This may be items like software installers you’ve downloaded, files sent to you from colleagues, and photos. This should be thought of as a temporary folder that must be emptied every day at the end of the day.
2. Actions: Put items requiring an action that takes more than 2 minutes in here. This may be items such as forms to fill out, large applications to install and setup, and files to upload.
3. Incubate: Put items you aren’t ready to do or complete in here. These may be articles you’re thinking of reading, rough outlines of potential projects, and to do lists you still want to add to.
4. Current Projects: Put files related to active projects in here. This folder contains projects you are currently working on. Each project gets its own folder and should contain subfolders with supporting files. Once the entire project is complete, move it into Archive.
5. Archive: Put completed projects, general reference items and anything else you might want to look at again in here.
Once you have the folders created, start moving things into them. The time you invest in organizing will be well spent.
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