Over the past 15 months the work environment for millions of employees has changed dramatically. With hundreds of thousands furloughed & or working from home; for many the CV19 pandemic has changed how many people work forever.
For those who have begun the routine of working from home, it has been a time of considerable adjustment. However, as lockdown restrictions are eased, many people are making decisions about where they will work in the future; from an office or a home office?
With many companies offering employees more flexibility to work from home & have regular ‘touch base’ days in an office environment; now would be the perfect time to have a Spring Clean. I don’t mean get the duster & mop out & clear up the physical dust & coffee ring marks; this is about your workspace & in this Spring Clean special, your digital Spring Clean.
Whether you are working in an entirely digital PC/Laptop based environment, or a warehouse, shop, or bakery, or you are a gardener, entrepreneur or business owner; you will at some point during your day or week have to use some form of technology to get you through your week.
Virtually Smart have created a simple check list for you to ensure you are keeping on top of your digital Spring Clean routine.
Downloads & Cookies (not from the biscuit jar!). Are you storing unnecessary data?
Every time you download something, it leaves a digital trail. Unless you set up a system for these to be deleted once read, it will continue to clog up your ‘Downloads’ folder. Once you have downloaded a document or piece of information, if you need to keep it, file it immediately & delete the trail from your device. This applies to mobile phones, as well as laptops, etc.
Many of us also forget that most websites we visit use cookies to gather information on our search preferences. These also leave a digital stamp on our hard drives & or storage space.
How do you avoid clogging up your PC/Laptop with unnecessary data?
All PC’s & Laptops have the ability to scan & remove unwanted digital rubbish.
Therefore, you can either physically select the three-dot menu at the top of your web browser, select Settings, click the hamburger menu on the top left & select Privacy & services. Under Clear browsing data, click Choose what to clear.
Or
If you don’t want sites to store cookies on your PC, you can block cookies. But doing this might prevent some pages from displaying correctly, or you might get a message from a site letting you know that you need to allow cookies to view that site.
In Internet Explorer, select the Tools button, & then select Internet options.
Select the Privacy tab, & under Settings, select Advanced & choose whether you want to accept, block, or be prompted for first-party & third-party cookies. (1)
Where is your data stored?
Do you store your data on a hard drive? Cloud? or is it clogging up the memory of your laptop/PC/palm pad? If you find you spend several minutes at a time trying to locate a file, but cannot remember which storage facility you filed that all too important document/invoice/quote under; you probably need some help getting organised.
The first action point here would be to limit the places you store data. If you can allocate one area which is easily accessible at all times, you will find you are locating documents with ease. Thousands of hours a year are wasted by employees & employers alike, trawling through unnamed folders on various platforms. If you are able, create one focal point & if you have several employees, give them read only access to vital data.
Are all your files in one folder?
Efficient working means being able to locate information immediately. Creating separate folders for documents or data, means you can gain access with the minimum of time wasted. In addition, carefully named folders mean you can search quickly & efficiently for the information you need.
Do you have a mailbox/inbox bulging at the seams with spam & unwanted junk mail?
When you set up your business, blog, advice page you thought having a mailbox connected would be a great way for you to filter & gather information. Little did you know that the dreaded ‘spam’ & ‘junk mail’ would find its way past your mail providers filters & sneak into your inbox.
Virtually Smart offer inbox monitoring, filtering & filing as part of their Executive Support, to keep your information easily accessible, clear of clutter & create a more effective working environment for you.
If you find yourself drowning in data & need support to ensure you can remain focussed & on top of your digital needs; then please do contact Virtually Smart & explore what we can do to support you. Contact Helena Parrott in the first instance on 07954 994769 or through our contact page.
- https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/delete-and-manage-cookies-168dab11-0753-043d-7c16-ede5947fc64d
