Filing - Barb

Barb had been trying to use a standard filing system that utilized colors, categories, and a master file notebook. It wasn't working for her so we revamped the system to fit her needs.

First, we figured out which drawer would contain which topic – top left, personal; bottom left, taxes; top right, business related; bottom right, monthly bills. Then we went through each folder, one at a time and decided whether it was a keeper, could go completely away (a lot of her folders were empty), or needed renaming. When renaming a file or tab we just wrote in pencil so she could change it later if it wasn't quite right. As Barb was getting a clearer picture of the categories she was creating, she decided to keep the files in the personal and business drawers in alpha order. The tax and monthly bill drawers were kept by month/year.

After all of the drawers had been gone through we quickly created a Master File List on her computer in Excel (email me for an example).

Barb used her system for several weeks, moved some files around, and added to the drawers. Once we knew the system was going to work for her (which she knew immediately because she began to file without any prompting) we relabeled the files so they were easy to read; using Avery colored labels. Each drawer, "Main Category", was given a different color for the labels; personal – purple, business – green, taxes – red, and bills – yellow. As we relabeled we also made sure that all of her files were included on the Master File List.

Now she can retrieve documents quickly because the system was designed around her style (words, phrases, thought process). If she happens to forget where she put something or can’t find a file, she can use the Find function in Excel. She’ll learn one of two things, 1) where the file is located, in which drawer; or 2) a file hasn’t been made yet.

Comments

[Christine Ayers]

Jessica! Great website and great information! How could we get you to travel and do some seminars up here in Montana? I know I would love to attend- and the teachers at school would love it too! Maybe a trip for the summer!
Take care and great job! I just wish I could see first hand how to really fold a fitted sheet!!!
Chris