Look Out for Filing Systems (That Aren’t) Because They Will Steal Your Time, Energy, and Attention!

Filing stuff (papers, client files, articles, projects, etc.) can be a genuine nightmare. If you’ve ever asked yourself, “Now, where did I put that?” then you need to get a real system and stick with it. Here is the best suggestion I can give you:

• Use Paper Tiger. I thought long and hard about whether to insist on an actual product, but it was my assistant who made up my mind. “Are you kidding?” she asked. “You’d fire me if I didn’t encourage you to use this for our office!” Well, I probably wouldn’t fire her, but I did insist on this filing system for our office - and still do over 15 years later.

Let me tell you more (and I did teach a free webinar on Paper Tiger software, which you may access here: https://meggin.com/classes/paper-tiger/).  Once you have watched that, then here’s how to get going:

• Either commit one full day to Paper Tiger-ing your office or determine a certain amount of time you will spend each day until you are all set up. The full day could be a work day if you’re able to set yourself up to be uninterrupted. Weekends or holidays also work great. If you can have a friend with you, that’s also quite helpful as long as your friend knows how s/he can be of the most help. One other recommendation is to hire a professional to come to your workplace to Paper Tiger your office – see the Paper Tiger website for recommendations. 

To prepare for your Paper Tiger event and get yourself in shape:

• Have lots of garbage bags on hand.
• Have access to recycle bins. 
• Have plenty of hanging file folders ready along with the tabs that fit into the top of them. P.S. Invest in high-quality folders. This is not a place to scrimp.
• Wear clothes that can get dirty (you won’t believe how dirty your office is). 
• Have lots of anti-bacterial wipes on hand. 

The gist of how the Paper Tiger system works is this (but I do encourage you to watch the free webinar):

• You will decide on keywords for your files. Imagine being able to look up a certain file by any of the following: “Anderson file, Betty, August 2019, 3-day project, Louisville.” You can have as many or as few words – each of which will call up the file – as you choose. This allows you to find files in the same way that you can locate a webpage – using keywords – rather than having to decide what to call the file and then feeling constrained by that (plus it’s easy to procrastinate setting up a file while we worry about what to call it).
• Your files will be in numerical, not alphabetical, order. When you type in “Anderson,” the Paper Tiger system will tell you which file number and which location. In this example, the Anderson file might be in “Desk Cabinet #7.” You name each location (e.g., Desk Cabinet, Reference File Room, Personnel, or whatever). 
• Non-paper items are easy to find. You are not limited to files and papers only. As you’ll see in the webinar, I use Paper Tiger in my storage unit with each box having a number. A teacher might not want to “file” sample student projects in a filing cabinet because of their bulk but instead could locate these items in a locker or cabinet. They’d be easily retrievable if Paper Tiger software was used to keep up with them.

A few other tips when you’re clearing the clutter:

• As you set up Paper Tiger in your office, throw away all items that can be accessed through the internet.  I used to keep professional journals – but not anymore! Recycle your collection and access them all online. 
• Evaluate your office space for getting work done. Do you really need food in your workspace (i.e., enough for a buffet? Would one food bar or a few pieces of hard candy suffice?) How about a drawer full of make-up and lotion? And while we all need a few Post-it? notes, probably not an entire drawer full. If all your drawers were open and your boss came into your office, would you be getting a raise soon?
• Eliminate piles of anything. Take one final look at your desk. Is there a pile (of anything) that you haven’t dealt with in days, weeks, or even months? You can probably just toss it all (or at least give it away), but then vow to keep your space tidy and work-related. You don’t want your office to look like an episode of “The Hoarders.”

Filing is dreary work, and most of what you file is NEVER SEEN AGAIN. Do you really need it? If you can’t say yes immediately, chuck it. Get Paper Tiger? and use it – you will never regret it.

Possibly you agree with Quentin Crisp’s quote,

“Is not the whole world a vast house of assignation of which the filing system has been lost?”

You probably can't find everything in the world with a great filing system, but you can at least find your own "stuff." :)  

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Time thieves are part of modern life (sad but true). You have the power to prevent such pilfering of your productivity. Now that you know the filing systems to be watchful for, you're ready for even more strategies and ideas. This Get a Plan! Guide? will help you banish the burglars who threaten your productivity, professionalism, and peace of mind. It's a fun, practical, and strategic guide for those who value lives of peaceful, predictable productivity. And that's you!

About Meggin McIntosh

I’m a former university professor and administrator and am currently a coach, author, and workshop leader. People just like you, i.e., people who are overwhelmed and would prefer to be overjoyed instead, are the people I’m fortunate enough to attract and work with. I am thankful every day. https://meggin.com