Organize your DIGITAL FILES

This packet of mine has been “on the market” since April, and it was quickly put on so many of my bloggy friends’ “summer to do lists”, so as I sat down to archive a few more of my files that I had purchased during the December sale, I thought that it might be perfect timing to highlight this organizing tool on my blog just in time for the New Year! Starting off 2015 on an organized foot sounds like perfection to me!! 🙂

Ok, Ashley – – – so WHAT IS IT?!?!
It is a VERY SIMPLE table that I’ve created in Keynote (which – no worries –  opens in Powerpoint:) ).  I’ve created sections for each separate category of products that I own or have saved (reading, math, spring themed math, spring themed reading, March, science, clip art, fonts, etc), and I insert a screen shot of the cover photo of what is in my “purchases” on TPT.   It helps you to see AT AN ORGANIZED GLANCE  what all you own instead of scrolling through pages and pages of your “purchases” on TPT!

Here’s a peek inside MY archived files!! You can see that it’s truly not fancy! It’s just thumbnails, and on this page, I’ve left space to add notes or a description below the product! I like to leave myself notes about what file folder it’s saved in or whether or not I already have it printed/laminated, etc.

(Please tell me I’m not alone in the “OH EM GEE I JUST LAMINATED SOMETHING THAT I ALREADY HAVE LAMINATED AND PREPPED FROM LAST YEAR” club.  Please.) . . .

So what I do is add a text box and leave myself a note with the file cover! I might tell myself that the file is prepped, laminated, and printed, or that the file goes perfectly with unit 4 in math, or that my kids LOVED the _____ activity in the file, etc! So, not only do I see my reading resources all together at a glance, but the ‘notes to self’ help me to know how I’ve used it in the past, if it’s prepped from last year, etc! . . .

This way, you’ll never re-laminate a set again! Ok, never say never, but this will help at the very least! 🙂

Ready to give it a go?!?! Do you like what you see so far?! You can click on ANY image in this post to take a closer look at the product itself on TPT! But no worries . . .I’m not done.  I’ve still got lots to share! <3 . . .

In action!
Because this product is editable and customizable to fit your organizational needs, you will be able to see at glance a page full of great products that you own that all fit the same category! You could also even organize your products by seller! Within my Math Resources section, my #bloggybestie, Angie, has her own section!

Below you can see an action shot of me adding the cover photo one of my mannnnnny purchases from my sweet friend Angie at Mrs. Olson’s Lucky Little Learners! (you have to check out her interactive notebooks!) Below, I’m adding her Fraction interactive notebook thumbnail image to my “math resources” page!

FAQS: 

What software do you use to create your products?
I create all of my products, including this one, in KEYNOTE which is software on a MAC that is very very very similar to Powerpoint.  I just haven’t been brave enough to switch over to powerpoint yet due to the learning curve it will bring.  PLUS I love Keynote.  🙂 But the GREAT news is… whatever I create in Keynote, I can save as a ppt file which allows you all to open and use this file in Powerpoint seamlessly! YAY!

How do I make a thumbnail of the cover?

You can also simply take a “screen shot” of the product cover (command, shift, 4 on a MAC) which will then save the image to your desktop making it easy to find and insert right into the organizer file! (That’s how I do it!! 🙂

Keep it digital or print it?
I typically keep my purchases file digital, but, because I’m SUCH a visual learner, and LOVE seeing things “at a glance” in an organized way, I do keep my fonts, clip art, papers, and borders organized in a hard copy as I put them into my Schroeder Shenanigans resource binder that you can read much more about {HERE!}

Can you link the product image to the product itself?
YES!!!! Honestly – I haven’t done this part yet.  I more so just make notes to myself about where the file is saved on my computer making it easy to find each, however, you can link the thumbnail of each product that you insert into the product organizer to a web address of the file! I’ve linked the image to the product on TPT (however, sometimes a seller will remove a file from their store, and then you may be stuck hunting for it) OR you can link it to the product in Google Drive!

Here’s a brief how to to save a product as and link a product to Google Drive!

Doesn’t it take forever?
hashtag no sugar coating here . . . .
Yes.  It does.  But once you set it up, it’s easy and quick to add to it! You just have to stay on top of it! As soon as I make a purchase on TPT, I add “archive new files” to my to do list so I don’t forget to add my new products to my purchase organizer!

When should I use it?
There are certain things that I can “put off” or procrastinate on, but getting something like this taken care of was high on my priority list – – -THEN the secret is to keep up with it once you do get it all organized!

Even though I have my purchases pretty well organized and ready to go, now – EVERY TIME I check out at TPT, I download my new purchases into a folder called “FILE THESE PURCHASES”  that is on my desktop.  Then, when I have insomnia get the chance, I update my purchased files by putting them into my purchase organizer! SUMMER is definitely an ideal time to get this started, but we’re also on winter break NOWWW, so what are you waiting for?!?!?  wink.

Whew! Hopefully this is just what you need to get your organizational gears turning for the new year!! If you like my organizing style, you may like to check out the discounted bundle that this pack is a part of {HERE}!