Spring Cleaning #30: Take a Load Off Our Drives

The P: drive is a lifesaver for children's librarians! Summer Reading Program (SRP) would be a nightmare without the folders organized for branch usage. A librarian who preceded me in this position kept everything on paper and what there was on the P: drive was not organized. Needless to say, when she had to take emergency leave, the staff left to run SRP were mostly in the dark about the who, what, when, where and how of each program listed in the flyer. Personnel from other branches donated time and had to make do with what they could figure out to make it work. I approach SRP organization as if I would not be available for any occasion, and organize that year's SRP folder on the P: drive, clearly labeled so that each program is a no-brainer. I even have the tickets for the ticketed programs ready to print. I think it is a good practice for everyone who provides programming because you never know when a personal crisis or emergency will pop up.

The S: drive has made the printing procedure process really work. Branch staff keeps our folder really clean so that Admin doesn't have to sort through a lot of files to find the information that we need to have printed. It makes sharing files with other librarians a snap.

I did not need to move and re-organize much on my folder in the P: drive because it is a daily and weekly routine I already follow that sure helps make my life simpler.

Spring Cleaning #29: Email

The articles on GTD were interesting. I thought I was fairly well organized, but I think I will start a tickle file like the one discussed in the article. I can really see the value of the file, especially the part about placing the things you need for a particular date in the corresponding file. That way if you are running behind for whatever reason, all you will need to do is open the folder for that date and grab the itinerary, map, notes or whatever is needed. No more trying to remember where everything is and whether I forgot an essential item.

After reading about organizing email on Clean Out Your Computer Day Tips and Ideas I added a few more folders to my work email that should help clean up a lot of clutter. I spent 30 minutes re-visiting my Inbox, and even though I thought I was getting rid of non-essential emails, I found a lot still sitting there that served no purpose and I got rid of them. Many more found there way to my folders. I was able to get my quota usage back into the green zone, no more yellow!

I registered with Remember the Milk. It was easy to set up and make entries. I don't have any pressing memos for today, so I made a few up and it worked well. I only check my personal email a couple of times a day so I made sure to have reminder notices post at times that I would be accessing email, and the reminders popped up as promised. I'm not sure how often it will be useful for me, I found it just one more site to open, and remember to use. I have been using month-at-a-glance calendars for years and they have served me well.