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Once upon a time, my Google Drive was a jungle of folders.

Every search felt like training on the Time Chamber, with minutes turning into eternities.

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Me trying to find my document in the jungle of folders. Source: https://dragonball.guru/hyperbolic-time-chamber-calculator/

All of that changed when I started using the P.A.R.A Method, popularized by Tiago Forte.

If you feel like you're entering chaos every time you click on your Google Drive, let me show a trick that will fix this.

Let's bring order to the folders!

The P.A.R.A Method

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Photo by freddie marriage on Unsplash

P.A.R.A means:

  • P = Projects
  • A = Area of Responsibility
  • R = Resource
  • A = Archive

The idea is to condense all your information in 4 folders.

Yes, only 4 folders.

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My Google Drive Folders (Ignore the PhD folder). Author's Image.

By organizing your work like this, it is way easier to find information and choose the priority of your projects.

This is a brief description of the folders:

  1. In the Projects Section, you will only upload the work that is a priority and you're working on it now.
  2. In the Area of Responsibility Section you will only have information that you need to work on because it is a responsibility. For example, I have a Medium Folder in this section, as I write every week.
  3. In the Resource Section, you can have information that doesn't belong to projects, neither is a responsibility. This could be information and ideas for the future, or interesting articles that you can use for other projects.
  4. In the Archive Section, you will upload all the projects that you finished. As you're not working anymore on them, you don't wanna mess up your Projects section. This is why you can put them here.

Benefits of the P.A.R.A Method

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Oh, there was some light there on my folders. Photo by Zac Durant on Unsplash
  • All your information is condensed into 4 folders, instead of multiple ones.
  • As you look and work for priority, it is way easier to find documents.
  • Also, it is way easier to choose a folder where you will work on.
  • Helps you integrate your workflow.

Conclusion

The jungle now is a sinfonia of folders, all dancing in harmony.

The P.A.R.A method allows you to organize your life in just 4 folders, making it easier to work and find documents.

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