Filing & Organization: Store More, Search Less

Are you constantly tossing files on your desk or making piles just to get stuff out of the way? This article will provide you with filing and organization tips that will help you organize your files so you can find them easily when you need them. Specifics may vary from person to person; however, the following information includes helpful and important guidelines from which everyone can benefit.

One of the biggest challenges facing most people who work in an office is the fact that they never seem to have enough desk space. With all of the daily tasks, the big projects, the phone calls and the disruptions, we simply don't have time to stay organized. What we don't realize, however, is that filing and organization shouldn't be work. When you are at work you are supposed to be working. So, filing and organization should be efficient and productive. Here are some ways to help you get the most out of your time in the office.

Maintain a neat desk. Obviously, a messy desk can be a real time-stealer. Think about it, how many times have you wasted several minutes searching for a missing document that was buried the whole time under a pile of papers? Sure, it's not easy to keep your desk neat when you get especially busy, but making the effort to do so can really pay-off in time efficiency!

Purge your files. Look in your file drawer right now and chances are you'll see many papers that are old, outdated and useless. Remove them because they're only taking up space. If you're not entirely sure about throwing them away, create an "archive file" to store them apart from your "live" file, allowing easier access to current files.

Organize your shelves. Is your cubicle being over-run by shelves that are piled high with aging materials? How about the shelves in your home office? Outdated magazines, old letters, last year's calendar...these can all be tossed in the trash. Books and binders that may have toppled over on shelves should be stood neatly upright with bookends to support them. And loose papers should be examined if they're not needed, throw them away, if they are needed, put them in the file before they get lost.

Organize your organizer. Whether you're using one of the latest digital palm organizers or an old fashioned paper-bound organizer, there is likely a whole bunch of information stored away that is no longer viable. The meeting you scheduled into your palm unit - the one that happened 3 months ago - delete it. The business card you stuffed into your appointment book, the card for the company you were supposed to meet with 8 months ago but didn't, discard it. The bottom line is, the only way your organizer itself, and ultimately you, can be completely organized is if things are up to date.

Use color in your files. We've talked about the value of color many times in our newsletters. Here's a reminder of how vital using color folders can be: studies have shown that color-coding your files can reduce the amount of time it takes to find specific papers by 33% or more.