Something that I do that helps boost my productivity both professionally and personally is organize all of my files. Knowing where everything is means that I don’t have to waste any time searching for anything. The amount of time gained back from this is unbelievable. So, what exactly does this look like? Well, my Dad used to tell me all the time as a kid, “Tomorrow is never promised. You could walk out your door tomorrow and get hit by the beer truck.” A little morbid, sure, but it put things into perspective for how to live life. It also helped me think about what others would have to deal with whenever it was my time to go. I thought, I want to leave people the least amount of effort for them as possible. Now, when it comes to data, I try to keep all of my files set up so anyone could open them up and be able to understand and find anything that they need to.
Document Folders
The first thing I do with my files is put them into folders. Here’s a couple examples:
Professional Example
Inside of my Documents, I put everything into folders by project with one folder at the bottom for “Misc.” I will list them with numbers first, so that the Misc folder ends up after the project folders, since it doesn’t get used very often. I try to only use that folder as an absolute last resort. If at all possible, things should be organized into a correct project folder. Sometimes the folders need to be adjusted to makes sure that this happens. Another thing that you might notice is that I always start the numbering with a 0 before the 1, 2, 3, etc. This is so when you get to higher numbers like 12, it doesn’t start numbering them in 1, 11, 12, 2. If you happen to get into the 100s (I’m sorry, that sounds so terrible), you should start every one with 00.
Next, I will put them into folders of similar types of documents. As you can see below, for a quality engineer, you might see documents such as Control Plans, FMEAs, and Work Instructions, among others. Again, I put Misc at the bottom.
Then, inside these folders, I put the actual documents.
This allows for anyone to open up my Documents, be able to see what projects exist, and easily find whatever document they are looking for. I will say, most companies will have a Document Control software. Always, I repeat, ALWAYS, use whatever is in the actual Document Control. This filing system is more for work-in-progress documents, and should be labeled as so.
Personal Example
For storing my pictures, I made folders for each year. I have a Misc folder for things that aren’t really date dependent, and a “Not Sure the Date” folder, in case for some reason, the date modified is incorrect, and you can’t figure out what the true date of the picture was. This can happen sometimes if files are unzipped improperly from a zip folder.
Inside of each “Year” folder I list each month, by number and month spelled out (e.g. 01 – January).
Inside of each “Month” folder, I put a folder for Pictures and a folder for Videos.
Then, inside of each of the “Pictures” and “Videos” folders. I put the actual files. I name them in the following format DD-Mon-YYYY-XX (e.g. 03Mar2017-01, 03Mar2017-02, 03Mar2018-01). This allows the files to be in the correct chronological order, even if the modified date was messed up by something like improperly unzipping a zip folder.
Email Inbox
This is where some people are going to think I’ve lost my mind. My inbox on every email I own has 0 emails in them. On my phone, I have 6 personal emails, and 1 work email. As you can see below, I have nothing in my inbox.
So, what is my secret? I have folders for everything. If, for some reason, one folder starts to become filled with 1 thing, more than the other things within folder, I make that thing it’s own folder. For example, if I had a folder for a certain department, like the Quality Department, but 90% of the emails in that folder were from the Quality Manager, I would create a separate folder, just for the Manager.
But, how do I remember to do things if I put the emails away? Well, if they can be done very quickly, right then, I just immediately take care of the issue, and then file the email into its correct folder. However, very often, as you probably can relate to, emails often need more than just a couple seconds to deal with. So, how can I put away the emails? Remember the earlier image of my Documents folder? It also had an Excel file named “To Do.”
To Do File
In the “To Do” file I list every task I’m currently working on. I put the priority, the corresponding project, the task, any applicable documents, the due date, the status, any road blocks, any notes, and the last date I followed up on the task. I personally like to color code the items. Anything that is “Ahead of Schedule” I make blue. I color items that are “On Schedule” green. If the task is “Due Soon” I make it orange. Anything “Due Today” is yellow. If, for some reason, something is “Overdue” (which, hopefully, if you are following this blog and becoming more organized will become less and less of a thing), the color would be red.
Back to Emails
Back to your inbox. You can take every email that needs some time to work on, and put the task down in the To Do sheet. Then, you can file away the email without any worry of forgetting things. Thus, you won’t have to go digging through a ton of emails to figure out what you were supposed to be working on. It’s all in one central location, and if it helps, you can write down the email “Date” and “From” in the notes column, to be able to go back to it if you need more information.
Keep Your Files Organized
It will be very helpful for your productivity to have your documents and emails organized. Having a single place where everything you have to do is listed by priority, with everything you need to know about it, saves a lot of time. This will take pressure off of you, and help you become more focused and productive, as well as less stressed and a generally healthier person.
As I said before, it is not only beneficial to you to have your things organized, but for whomever comes after you. Whether you are moving on to a new position, or “You get hit by the beer truck,” it will really help take the edge off for the next person who has to figure out what you were working on. Become a healthier person, caring for yourself and those who come after!
1 thought on “An Empty Inbox?”