Top 5 Ways to Keep Your Virtual Workspace Organized
As digital marketers at ParadigmNEXT, we’re used to managing multiple projects at once, which means we typically have to transfer from one project to the next a matter of in seconds. Because of this, we’ve mastered the organization skills required for a virtual workspace. Here, we outline our top 5 ways to keep your virtual workspace organized so that you can stay productive and efficient.
- Clean Up Your Default Desktop
The manufacturers of your computer like to provide quick links of specific software and files on your desktop. However, just because it came that way does not mean it needs to stay that way! Go through your desktop and decide which ones you need to keep there, and which ones you can move elsewhere. For the icons that you can remove, you can place them in a folder, where they are easy to find. You could also hide them or remove the shortcuts completely. Notice how organized your desktop already looks!
- Embrace a Filing System
Many computers come with a built-in set of folders to encourage easy filing practices. These includes Documents, Pictures, Applications, Dropbox, etc. While the basics are covered, it’s up to you to start from the ground up, creating sub-folders within these folders, categorizing as you go. An example of this would be creating a folder for a specific client, then creating next level sub-folders for that specific client (such as website development, graphics, content, etc.), and then creating even more sub-folders within those. The goal is to create an easy to manage trail of data that makes adding files and searching for files an easy process.
- Get Creative with Your Files, Tasks and Projects
Once you’ve embraced the filing system, it’s time to get creative! As digital marketers, we may take this tip to the extreme, but it’s so simple that you can keep it basic as well. Color coding items is one of the easiest ways to keep your virtual workspace not only organized, but colorful and fun! For our files, tasks, and projects, we like to use colors according to relative importance. Select a bold or bright color for urgent items and a pastel or duller color for less urgent items.
- Save Your Screenshots Elsewhere
We often need to take screenshots for each other or for our clients, and the amount of screenshots that can collect and gather on our desktops can cover up the entire screen. It can get pretty messy real quick! Fortunately, many computers come with a command that can be run to change the default save location for screenshots. For a tutorial on how to do this, visit this website. If you’d rather keep screenshots on your desktop, make sure you change the name of the screenshot file and add each file to a relevant folder. This way, you can save them for later in a proper folder and use them as necessary.
- Utilize Available Tools
Luckily, for those of us who need a little help, there are virtual workspace tools available. Desktop customization tools can be very helpful for those who are not really sure where to start in making your desktop cleaner and making the search process simpler. Many computers now come with a desktop cleanup wizard, which is a great start, but now there are so many new software available for us to use. This website provides 10 desktop customization tools that are user friendly and super helpful during the workspace organization process. Take a look here.
Keeping your virtual workspace organized is not only essential for keeping you sane, it is also imperative for professional success. As digital marketers, our work is done online and within our computers, and for others within our industry, we hope that these 5 ways will help you get your virtual workspace organized and stay that way!
By: ParadigmNext http://paradigmnext.com
Google+: https://plus.google.com/+ParadigmNextChicago
ParadigmNEXT, Inc. is a new kind of marketing agency that integrates the two sides of the brain: strategic communications and business know-how. Connecting creativity with expertise in multiple industries, we are able to deliver measurable improvements and maximum impact.