Clean Digital Workspace = Clear Mind
Navigating my Google Drive used to be like trying to find the right key on the janitor’s humongous key ring. That thing I needed was there – I just knew it. But opening, reopening, and navigating through different documents in search of what I needed made me feel overwhelmed. I’d get nauseous just opening my Google Drive.
Most people in my industry use Google Docs and sing its praises for how easy it is to find and organize things. Sure, I liked it more than Word, but it hasn't quite reached that *easy peasy* level.
It's not that I wasn't creating systems. I was, but they weren’t refined or user-friendly. I imagine time travelling back to my new copywriter self and saying gently, “My dude. My dear. Just make it user-friendliness. I promise – it’ll do more for a ‘professional feel’ than any fancy system you’re trying. You’ll love it. It’ll be so much better for your clients. Trust me.”
Here's the plan I’d give younger me for cleaning up a disorganized Google Drive.
For context, I'm a writer. I ghostwrite and do a lot of copywriting. With my Google Drive, I deal with lots of docs for client work, calls, notes, personal notes, and collections of links.
Here's how I recommend starting to organize your Google Drive:
Create a personal folder for yourself, and then a folder for each of your clients.
Before organizing your Google Drive, you probably have a bunch of "files" that hang out in a long, endless scroll on the desktop. Before sorting through each doc, create some folders.
Give each client their own folder, whether you're currently working with them or have completed their work. Place all respective docs in the client's folder.
If something doesn't fit into a client folder, put it in your personal folder. If you have many untitled folders, leave it on the desktop We'll get to it in a minute.
Create a new folder for past clients.
Put all your respective past client folders into that folder. Then, place your "Past Clients" folder into your personal folder. Don't let a whole folder that you're not regularly using sit on the top of your Drive.
Organize your current clients' docs by project.
Once you enter the folder of a specific client, create a folder for the specific separation you need. This might include “blogs,” the “June plan,” or whatever is appropriate.
Open your untitled docs name your docs, then assign them.
Open them up, give them a name, and put them in the appropriate folder. They need to go there. Or simply delete them!
Google Drive habits that future you will adore
I also developed a few small habits that have saved me so much energy and time. Here's what I recommend:
Never leave anything untitled.
Even if it's a lousy title, give it something. It's easier to click "rename" when you have some context rather than opening the entire document to figure out what's going on.
Fill titles with relevant details.
I strongly suggest going beyond generic titles. Include the project name, client's name, and other pertinent information like time. For instance: Copywriting & AI | June 2023 Blog | Client McClient. This greatly improves searchability within the Drive.
Utilize links extensively.
I love highlighting text, hitting ⌘K (or Ctrl + K for Windows users), and inserting relevant links. It could be for the website it will be published on, references within the text, or links to other documents.
Avoid creating multiple documents when one will do.
I used to think it looked more official or somehow easier to have multiple docs for a single project. You guessed it – it only made things more complicated.
Now, I put relevant copy all together. For example, if I’m writing web copy for multiple pages, I put it all in a single document, even if it spans multiple pages. I make sure to use the index feature for easy navigation.
Why make each page its own Google doc? This approach has made things much more user-friendly for both me and my clients.
When you create a document, immediately assign it a folder
You can even assign it to subfolders. This prevents it from lingering in the no man's land of your drive files. If you opened the folder, then created a new document, that doc will automatically be in filed in that folder. Yay! One less thing to do.
I don't worry about organizing files that aren't in a folder until my admin time
You know when you have a document that's not assigned to a folder and it just lingers in the unorganized files? Ideally, nothing should be left there unless intentionally kept for easy access. I let things accumulate until my admin day to make the filing process more efficient.
When working with a document that isn't yours, save it and assign a folder as soon as possible
This saves you a lot of time when you need to retrieve it. Personally, I don't rely on the "shared with me" section much. Instead, as soon as I access a document, I click "add shortcut" and assign a folder within my Drive.
Use the batch select option
When assigning a file to your documents, select the relevant ones, click the "move to folder" icon (an arrow), and choose the desired folder for assignment.
Organized Google Drive = Clean Office
Having an organized Google Drive made all the difference for me. It transformed the feeling of being overwhelmed when starting work into a sense of capability to tackle any task. Plus, it eliminated the stress of wasting time searching for things or switching between documents because I couldn't quickly grasp the context from the title.
Over time, you'll discover what you use most frequently. Recurring topics make excellent folders. In my personal folder, for instance, I have sections for potential clients, notes, non-business documents created for friends, my swipe file, random fiction, and more.
Tackling your Google Drive is just grind work, but it’s a huge head start once you’re done. I really recommend going to a coffee shop or friend’s place to knock it out in a fun environment.
Plus, once you’ve pulled things together, it’s SO much easier to keep things organized. Even when you have weeks (or months) of letting things slide.
