Your “drawers” on your C: drive would look like this:
Annual Reports
Documents and Settings
Employee Newsletters
Marketing Materials
Program Files
User Guides
Windows
With this approach, your data drawers are mixed in with your application drawers. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with this approach if it works for you, but keep in mind that as you take on more work, you’ll have more drawers to look at. I prefer to have fewer drawers and keep all my work files in one place – even though it means one extra mouse click to get there.
Summing it all up…
Your electronic filing system should be logical and easy for YOU to use – otherwise you won’t stick with it. Take some time to plan it out first, and then file away!
Coming up…
Have you ever saved a document in Word or a picture in Photoshop, and then couldn’t locate it on your system? My next article will show you how to regain control of your system, and avoid losing your files in the tangled Windows hierarchy.
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