This article by Christie Love is a classic example of another way to use Paper Tiger!
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Okay, raise your hand if you have ever had a great idea or saw on somewhere that you did not want to forget. Now raise your hand if you jotted that idea down or tore it out of a magazine, only to loose it later and wonder what you did with it.
I was afraid of that…
So many of us have great intentions, but because we do not have good systems, we end up with lackluster follow through of intentions and ideas.
A few years ago, I started subscribing to a magazine that was so full of great ideas that I was terrified to throw them away. I would mark pages, dog ear ideas and then stack them; however, when the time came to find one of those great ideas again … I would have to dig through each magazine or try to remember what issue it was in. This dilemma inspired me to create my “Light bulb File”, curious? Let me explain how it works and how you can set up one for yourself so you never again are victim of another lost idea.
How to Create A Light bulb File
Step One: Purchase a three ring binder that is 1″ wide or larger.
Step Two: Purchase a set of tabbed dividers and label them for the different type of ideas, inspiration, clippings, etc… Anything that makes your “light bulb” go off when you see it or think of it. It is that idea that makes you say … “I would love to do this!”
For me some of my categories were: marketing ideas, games with the kids, crafts with the kids, household decor ideas, organizing ideas, quotes, icebreaker ideas, etc…
Everyone’s light bulb has a different trigger so everyone’s labels will be different!
Step Three: Either use clear plastic page protectors or a three-hole punch to slip clippings and papers into the appropriate categories. Also have blank paper in each category so that you can quickly jot down ideas that you think of or mount pictures that you take for inspiration.
The light bulb file is very simplistic by design … but it’s true “wattage” or power lies in the hands of the user. I love the quote that says “Thinking is easy, acting is difficult, and to put one’s thoughts into action is the most difficult thing in the world.” (Johann Wolfgang von Goethe) So much truth in that statement … it is easy to have or find a great idea … the next step is doing something about it.
I challenge each of you to make an idea file … your “light bulb” file if you will … and use it not as a safe keeping place where thoughts get trapped and not released into great action … but as a springboard to take you to new places in your homes, families, ministries and businesses!
Christie Love is the Director of Marketing for Jennifer Rothschild Ministries. She is passionate about many things including family, her faith, and helping women grow their businesses, ministries, and impact through improved marketing and leadership practices. In October of 2010, Christie will be relaunching the reformatted version of Simple Organized Sanity Online, a site that will offer downloadable planners, checklists, and lists to help you plan and stay organized. Follow on Twitter at http://twitter.com/christielove936
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How to Use Your Lightbulb File with Paper Tiger
When you begin inserting your ‘light bulb’ ideas into your binder or file, input the information from the idea or article into Paper Tiger Document Management Software and Filing System such as the idea or title of the article, description of the contents, and what you want to do with it or your desired call to action, and in which category you place it. It would be a great idea to number each page protector or the page that you hole-punch to coincide with the index number that Paper Tiger assigns when you enter the information. Then when you are ready to find the item again, you can conduct a ‘google-like’ search in Paper Tiger and be able to instantly find it!
Tags: The Paper Tiger 'Finding' Filing System, Tips for Using The Paper Tiger
