There’s something damned satisfying about reviewing a well-organized client file with proper dividers and labels the tactile feel of the paper, wired into the file through two holes punched at the top of the page (a vestige of accountants and attorneys), making me feel more like a Special Agent reviewing a top-secret file than a mere accountant. Life as a certified public accountant in the 1980s and 1990s drummed into me the importance of paper: permanent files, work papers, ledgers, and forms filled the large audit case I carried to back and forth clients. I’m also an avid journal and note-taker, filling many journals and cheap spiral notebooks with my chicken scratch writing for all my adult life I still think more clearly with a pen and paper at hand. I still prize the heft of a leather-bound book in my hands: the texture of the pages on my fingertips, a faint smell of ancient cigar smoke left over from the previous owner many decades ago. I’m a big reader and keep a private collection of treasured books. A Paradoxical Love of Paper and Technology Important things like insurance policies, home repair dates and costs, school transcripts, and vital records - all available to me from my phone, tablet or computer - yet secured by password protection and two-factor authentication (more on this later). Knowing I have complete access and control to all my information, both professionally and personally, is a real comfort to me. By moving to mostly electronic means for office paperwork, home bills, note-taking and even the books I read, I’m doing my small part to save trees. There’s an environmental cost to all the paper that clutters our lives. Physical access to loose papers and files is far easier to snoop than hacking password-protected and encrypted digital files (though that’s still a risk). In my strategy job, I necessarily work with confidential information, usually about a potential acquisition of another company. Having near-instant access to all my files and documents is a real productivity boon. Usually, anything I need can be retrieved on my iPhone wherever I am. Gone are the days of sifting through stacks of file folders, or waiting until I get to the office to retrieve an important document. Having all my documents stored in an electronic and searchable format makes finding information when you need it much, must faster. Out of sight, out of mind, yet organized. Now, all that paper is filed away digitally. Before I went paperless, I hid all the squalor in stuffed filing cabinets and desk drawers. When I see a mess of papers, it bothers me enough to interrupt my concentration. The adage that a clean desk is an indication of a disorderly mind describes me well. I am one of those people who has to keep a neat desk and office clutter at a minimum to avoid distraction. If you’re a Windows user, the software tools I recommend won’t be available - sorry. My technology platform is exclusively Mac, iPad and iPhone. In this post, I’ll share how I eliminated 95% of the paper from my home and office, and in the process, increased my productivity in a meaningful way. The technology has improved a lot since I started, making it pretty easy for anyone to reduce to eliminate paper from their daily life. I have kept a paperless office for nearly a decade.
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