Make Files Not Piles!
Here are a few quick tips to help you out with organizing your filing systems. What is important to remember is to “make files and not piles” to manage your flow of paperwork! To do this though, you need to maintain a routine purging system. I know, that is a lot to have to worry about. Here are a few tips!
1) When it is possible, make your computer folders and files mirror your physical folders and files.
2) Use file names that make sense to you. You need to be able it find it later.
3) Write out the file names and don’t abbreviate unless absolutely necessary (I like to use my label maker to label all of my files).
4) No matter how organized you are and how good you are at keeping things filed, if you never spend any time purging your file drawers they will become full. When this happens you will start to pile. In order to avoid it getting to that point, make time to purge your files regularly.
4) If you create the same types of files regularly use a naming system so files that start the same way will all be grouped together. Electronically that happens automatically, but it is nice when the paper files correspond.
5) Starting folder/file names with a project name, client name or date can be helpful.
6) Use a limited number of categories for your folders and subcategories when necessary (if any category is too large).
Happy Filing! Bridges
