Why didn’t I think of this before?

I’ve spent the past few months trying to get a handle on productivity. I tried going back to a paper planner and doing the Franklin Covey time management system, tried a system based on David Allen’s Getting Things Done system, unstructured notebooks, coveted moleskine notebooks, tried the Hipster PDA, and tried running everything through Outlook.

I’m back to doing everything through Outlook in a GTD style, with a notebook for data entry - work product goes in the notebook first then items I need to keep around get put into Outlook for posterity.

One trick that David Allen recommends is tossing out your hanging files and stacking your file folders in the drawer. WHY DIDN’T I TRY THIS BEFORE?

Folders stand up by themselves - there’s a sliding backing plate holding them up. It’s much easier to search, files take less space, and since I use my files like a cache, I can sort them based on most recent use.

I’ve NEVER sorted my files alphabetically. Should Nortel networks info go under Nortel, Ohio office, Telecom, or ??? With this system, as I take and replace a folder, I replace it at the front of the cabinet. After a while, most recently used documents trickle forward, unused ones end up in back.