Digital Organizing 101
Digital organizing - also known as - cleaning up those files that are sitting on your computer from 10 years ago that you forgot ever existed. I will start out by saying this is definitely a time consuming task, depending on how full your files currently are. There are a multitude of reasons why this is a good thing to spend some time on.
Does it stress you out when you go looking in your digital files and can't remember where you saved anything?
Does it stress you out when you save the newest version of your resume, but you have 50 files named some form of the title: resume?
There are a number of ways to go about cleaning out your hard drive.
You want to delete everything that is no longer relevant to your life (i.e. that paper you wrote freshman year of college for your Philosophy class)
You want to keep some or all of these documents (for whatever reason, no judgement), but you need to organize them and find a home for each item.
Delete all non-important documents.
First, set your goal. Which of the previous three encompasses your main goal for digital organizing? Maybe you realize its a little bit of all three.
Second, take a quick sweep of your files - whats there? Start to make folders for the things you see immediately that will need it. This could include jobs, applications, mortgage, business, college, grad school, etc.
Then step by step you start to go through your current files and put them where they belong. If its unnecessary, delete it. Maybe you need to make new folder. You can even start to make folders within each folder - it can be as simple as "OLD" or as specific as by year or class.
Find what works for you.
The purpose of digital organizing is making things easier to find for you and your life. Don't try to be clever and make funny names of things, say what they are. There's a great feature on computers now that let you search your entire "My Documents" folder - but you have to know what you named your document, so make it make sense!
Once you are done, you can even put all of the files and folders that you don't use into one "Old Documents" folder. You know you want it, or want to keep it, but why have it clutter up your computer. Leave room for the things you need.
There is no easy way to organize your digital files, but it makes our lives a little easier when they are organized.
Good luck!