AboutJan Hayner Expertise I can answer any questions on Home organizing, file and paper management, organizing for parents, kids, senior citizens and on housekeeping and cleaning solutions.
Experience I have been a Professional Organizer for 9 years, I am considered an expert in my field on the internet and have written several informational books on organizing.
Organizations I am an active member of Faithful Organizers (An International Association of Christian based Professional Organizers, a past member of NAPO (the National Association of Professional Organizers)a member of an association called Women in Management, a member of Money Smart Wisconsin-Sheboygan and was a business owner for over 25 years.
Education/Credentials A high school graduated a the rest of my learning capablilities came from making a lot of mistakes in my lifetime and learning from all of them.
Question Paper and Boxes filled with paper of all sorts and office stuff seem to follow me - at home in the spaces I use for working and eventually into the storage shed, attic spaces, etc. I have a generally clean and organized house - living areas/kitchen/bathroom/bedroom, but when it comes to paper and files - of all sorts including those on my computer's hard drive, I am a mess. My work involves people, teaching, research, history, oral history, and related services. My desk area at work - and my filing cabinet, drawers and bookcases are similarly cluttered with paper, notebooks, correspondence, etc. I'm both employed and have a small business that also involves the same types of work. [As a multidisciplinary person I've realized that my multiple interests - personal and professional - are not going to change, and I'm o.k. with that. What I'm not ok with are the boxes and drawers and shelves that accumulate hundreds of pages of paper, articles, correspondence, research findings, etc. and the related clutter of computer supplies, parts, etc. Part of this is filing and part of it is knowing what to throw away and when. As a historian and teacher that's tricky. Books are less of a problem b/c they are neat and stand up on their own and look interesting - not so with loose papers, notebooks and files.
I regularly start filing systems but they never seem comprehensive enough to hold my stuff or to let me easily find it - or maybe it's that I am not taking the time to use them correctly? Not sure of the root of the problem. I'm of a middle generation between Boomer and Gen X that remembers what a secretary/assistant was (I used to be one and can do this for others pretty easily), and the present do-it-all-yourself approach of society. When I had a secretary/assistant in the past at work it helped a lot, but that's not an option now.
I've got every "clutter-riddance" book ever written and have bought and tried numerous filing systems but there seems to be something I'm not "getting".
Can you help me: a) find the root of this, and b) make a plan and be SUCCESSFUL at getting rid of the clutter so that I can be more efficient and waste less time? I've begun to scan some things and that feels great, but am not sure if this is smart if I can't find the stuff once it's been scanned.
Would it be a good idea to get an organized IT proficient student to help me part time? HELP!
Thanks.
Mike
Answer Hi Mike;
Well, you have the ability to do the work yourself (not that you may have to have a little help, later, down the line). If you have done things for others as an assistant, you already know what needs to be done. The problem is 'self discipline' when it comes to YOUR work.
I know that feeling, as you are going through your papers and trying to organize everything, you keep getting side tracked. This could be with seeing things that you can 'tweak', creating an additional piece of information to go with it etc. It is common believe it or not.
The first things you need to do is 'organize your Brain'! Sounds ridiculous, right? However, it isn't. Imagine someone coming in to your office and giving you all of the information that you have and asking you to put it into categories so that they can find it faster.
Using the guide that you mentioned in your letter as the MAIN Topics in your filing system, that would be;
people, who they are, alphabetically
teaching, Topic you are teaching; computers; sub categories, repair, outlook express, word, power point etc.
research,Main topic is research, sub categories would be 'working on', category that was researched such as 'cleaning and subcategories, kitchen bedroom vehicle, engine etc.
history,Use same system as 'oral history'
oral history,--name either dates in history,events,or possibly use both systems at once; such as 1812 and then War of 1812 would follow, just like a library card research box
related services--name the services alphabetically
All of these can be transferred to disks and will be put into disk storage cases alphabetically the same way. This way you can save on computer space.
Any papers that have to go along with this can be stored in binders, labeled the same way and put on a shelf for easy access.
If you have storage in more than one place, such as CD, File, Notebook. Simply mark this on the OUTSIDE of the folder in your filing cabinet or make yourself a guide that names the topic and places that information is stored.
Magazines can be stored on shelves the same as books, just invest in magazine storage containers and label them appropriately. Don't forget to add this to the OUTSIDE of your folder so you know in what book, the month and date of the book to look in and the page number.
Just keep thinking Simple and use the library system as your guide.
If you get overwhelmed and it is taking too long, go to your nearest high school and get a computer geek to help you, they are terrific! Some are so great that they can set up a program for you to follow.
As you are going through the papers, get rid of duplicates, half finished work that you aren't going to use, combine papers that have 'like' information etc. Don't forget to use a paper shredder for everything that you get rid of.
I hope this gave you a starting point. Just 'keep it simple' follow a library system and Work Smarter-NOT Harder.
Good Luck, Jan Hayner
