This week, we dove into the concept of clutter.
In the mix of my research, I came across a stat from Regina Lark that I can’t stop thinking about. She suggests that the average U.S. household has 300,000 items inside. You count everything down to paperclips. Still – 300,000!
I started to think about this in the context of work. How many items does the average knowledge worker have? These days we don’t “see” the files hidden inside of computers. We don’t know how many files are stored and how they are organized (or not).
My Perspective – We Need Help with the Invisible
The information inside our computers – from files to emails – isn’t seen by others.
We don’t share how we organize and approach the work that consumes most of the day.
We aren’t even trained along the way on the best practices or how technology could help us be more efficient and make some aspects of our work simpler.
My Story
Many of us, me included, took offline office work practices and moved systems online.
I’m focused on my folder structure to keep track of information I need and going back at a later point to reference. However, I wonder if search technology today could help me find information quickly without needing to spend the time on my complex folder system.
Since the emergence of personal computers was happening during my college and early work years, I don’t know if kids today are taught best practices for organizing and finding information in school.
What would a course in this space look like?
What information is needed?
Your Turn
How cluttered is your work computer?
Are both email and files organized in a similar fashion?
Have you had any formal training on digital organization?