Tips for Grads: How to keep your digital life organized
Personal Effectiveness
As an online student, digital tools are critical to a successful semester. You use these tools every day, so it’s important to organize them in a way that optimizes productivity, and makes them enjoyable to use. Use these three suggestions for organizing your digital life.
Create a naming and file structure. Do you have a bunch of loose documents floating around your computer? Whether you store your documents on your desktop or in the cloud, it’s smart to create a file structure in order to find what you need quickly. Perhaps create a “Fall 2019” folder with subfolders for each class where you can store notes and assignments for each. While you’re it, label each document clearly so you can identify its contents without opening it (e.g. AppliedLeadership_Notes_09182019).
Declutter your inbox. While the concept of “inbox zero” might seem like a stretch, clearing out unnecessary emails will make keeping up with incoming emails more manageable. Consider categorizing the keepers into files for receipts, confirmations, “to read”, etc. As you declutter, unsubscribe to emails that you no longer wish to receive.
Safeguard passwords. You’ve heard it many times, managing your passwords is an important — if not the most important — part of your digital life. Create strong passwords from the get-go using this handy
guide to creating passwords. Remember to update your passwords regularly, avoid using the same password for multiple accounts, and of course, never to share your passwords with anyone. To keep them organized, consider using password protection software with encryption.
