Filing is Like Your Purse, Part 1

We love our purses. When you find the perfect purse, you LOVE it. It feels right, looks great, stores your stuff exactly the way you want it and you love being seen with it.

Could you say the same for your filing system?

I never would have put the two together either, except for bumping into the idea yesterday at work. A purse is a method of storage, so is a file system. If you can relate to a great purse, I believe you can also be great at filing on your computer or in a physical paperwork filing system.

This series will address the comparison and how to set up your files so you can be as excited to show off your new filing system as you will your new purse! Well, almost as excited.

Defining a Great Purse
Ah, the perfect purse! There is nothing like it. It represents you and carries your mobile world in your unique style. If you love your purse it probably meets the following criterion:

• It looks fabulous
• It feels good to carry and to work with
• It has just the right amount of storage and compartments for the things you carry
• It makes you feel good -- confident that you look good and have what you need
• It is possible to find what you need by feel because you know exactly where you keep everything in it

A great filing system is going to offer you the same support. It may not necessarily be something you carry around with you and goes great with your outfit, but supports you! Your method of storing information should fit the same criterion:

• It should look great, easy on the eye
• It should feel good to use and store information in a way that you feel confident you can find things again
• It should hold everything you need to keep or retrieve with just the right compartments
• It should offer you a "find it by feel" confidence to the degree that you could easily guide someone else to find information if you can't get it for them

Next issue, how to organize your purse and/or filing system so it works for you!


(c) 2010 Sheri Smith Bertolini