Keeping control of ALL that information – My system and tips

One thing I love about the web is all of the information you can get on just about any topic.

In the past few years I have subscribed to many newsletters, websites and articles  on topics such as business, art, art licensing etc.
I have learnt so much from various people and from time to time I like to refer to that information again to remind myself of where I have come and points I have forgotten.

So what to do with all this information once you have found it?

The “environmentally friendly” thing to do is ofcourse bookmark the website or save the email.
Unfortunately websites don’t always stay around forever and articles from XYZ may not longer be around when you go to look for it 3months or 6months later,  not to mention the fact that, I have sooo many bookmarks it is sometimes are finding the exact thing I am after when I can’t remember the exact website or name for the thing I was looking for.

So, I thought I would share with you the little system I have created in order to store and retrieve the info easily and quickly.

1. I have reverted to “the good old days” and I print articles out, (ONLY the really really good ones I want to refer to later). I then staple the pages together and file them in these pocket folders.  I have categorised them into sections as to what they are referring to.

2.On the front of the folder I write  Title of the article, and The person who wrote it. Each time I print off a new article  I want to keep, I pop it in the folder and update the front. These folders are cheap and have lots of room to write on and store quite a few articles.

3. Then I stack these folders in a place in my studio which is not on my desk but still easily accessible so I can retrieve them when I want to.

TIP: In an effort to eradicate my office of NO MORE PILES!  These folders are stored standing up! It means spines can be easily read from the top and  these folders have the flat bottoms so they are perfect for keeping my office pile FREE

So there is my little organising tip for storing all your valuable information downloaded off the internet.

I could get all fancy and start typing things out and sorting things into colours but I wanted to keep this simple. I think the trick is make it work for you and don’t make it complicated if there are too many steps you won’t do it!

I hope you like it ! Please let me know what you think.