Recently, professional organizer Marie Kondo partnered with Google One to provide tips for users on “how to spark joy in your digital life” by being organized online. By following Kondo’s organization tips, you could live a happier, simpler and more organized life online.
Who is Marie Kondo?
Kondo is a Japanese professional organizer who has written several books on decluttering and organization, including the bestselling “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up.” She has also developed her own unique approach to organization called the KonMari Method, which has gained widespread popularity in recent years.
What is Google One?
Google One is a subscription-based service that provides users with expanded storage capacity for their online files and a range of other features and benefits. It is one of several Google services that offer storage space, including Google Drive and Gmail.
How Marie Kondo and Google One work together
In her Netflix series and books, Kondo encourages people to start by making a list of the areas they would like to organize, such as their clothes, books or papers (in a digital sense, that may be your emails, photos and documents). She then suggests taking time to go through each item and determine if it still “sparks joy.” If not, Marie suggests letting go of the items (or, in a digital sense, deleting them).
In announcing Google One’s recent partnership with Kondo, Google stated that Google One allows users to “keep everything that sparks joy in one place with Google One’s expanded storage and easily organize it in a few steps.” The idea is that with Google One, you can easily organize, store and find your digital items all in one place.
Marie Kondo’s digital organization tips
Keep a cleaner inbox
If you wait for your inbox to overflow before you clean up emails, it will be very overwhelming to try and organize the space. In a recent Kondo/Google One newsletter, Kondo suggests you “make it a goal to address emails daily, so nothing stays in your inbox. For a fresh start, archive all your current emails. Don’t worry, you can always find them again by searching or going to All Mail.”
If the idea of addressing your emails daily is overwhelming, consider using an inbox cleaner such as Trimbox or Clean Email. Keeping your email cleaner is one of the first steps to keeping your digital life organized.
You only need a few folders
One of the biggest questions in the realm of digital organization is “how to organize digital files.” Kondo also encourages users to create a filing system that is both easy to understand and efficient. She recommends storing similar files in one folder and labeling that folder with a descriptive and simple name, such as “Vacation Photos” or “Important Documents.” This will help users find the items they need quickly and easily and will also help keep your computer more organized.
Organizing computer files in this simple way will make searching for specific documents easier. Just remember to name files using obvious keywords.
Search beyond keywords
The third tip shared by Google One and Marie Kondo is to search beyond keywords using the intuitive search feature in Gmail and Google Drive. This search features allow users to “narrow results by date, what’s in the email or file, who sent it, and more.” By using the search feature to its full potential, users can easily find the items they need without having to sift through hundreds of emails or files.
Sort by labels
Kondo also suggests organizing emails and files by labels. This will help you keep track of important emails or items, such as bills, for example, or any other emails or documents you want to access quickly. Once the items have been labeled, they can easily be found again when needed.
Give digital organization a try
Kondo’s tips for digital organization are simple but effective. By keeping a cleaner inbox, organizing files into folders, and using search features to their full potential, users can easily find the items they need without becoming overwhelmed by digital clutter. Additionally, Kondo recommends sorting emails and files by labels to keep track of important documents or items. These tips are a great starting point for anyone looking to organize their digital life.
Organizing Kondo’s way is a fantastic method to de-clutter your digital life. With a few simple steps and the help of Google One, users can have their digital lives organized in no time. So give it a try! You might find that organizing digitally sparks joy in your life as well.