During this webinar, Anne discussed the basic concept of organizing both paper and digital files. She demonstrated the following to show how to use Paper Tiger more effectively so you can get organized and be more productive.
Find Anything In Your Office In 5 Seconds or Less…Guaranteed! Watch the webinar to learn more.
As information, Anne is a professional speaker, productivity expert, professional organizer and author. If you want to learn more about Anne and her services, please visit her website at www.StrategizeAndOrganize.com. She may be in Colorado, but she’s nationally recognized as an expert and works with people throughout the US in person and virtually.
You can contact Anne at amcgurty@strategizeandorganize.com or by phone at 303 881-0174.
See more information here on Paper Tiger Filing System Software for Document Management
Q: How secure are the digital documents that you scan in that are stored in Google Drive?
A: Information security is a top priority at Google… For more information, see Google Apps security whitepaper which is found at http://www.google.com/support/a/bin/answer.py?answer=60762
Q: Can you scan documents in and route to an action file?
A: You can set up a ‘collection’ or ‘folder’ in Google Drive for an action file.
Q: I would need 2 files, 1 for hard copy, titles, etc, the other electronic for all files, including vehicle titles?
A: With Paper Tiger Online and Digital Tiger, powered by Google Drive, you would be able to index your hard copy files, titles, etc. and upload your electronic files to Google Docs format, and be able to search from Paper Tiger Online to find both your hard copy files and your electronic files. When Digital Tiger is activated, search results are produced from both apps, Paper Tiger Online and Google Drive. See this knowledge base article that gives an overview of what Digital Tiger is and includes a screen cast for activating Digital Tiger: http://thepapertiger.com/support/articles.php?id=20297536&catId=20008411
Comment: I want to use it to organize other things. I have a million tapes, CD’s, and papers and need to get a handle on the best ways to set up them.
Response: Assuming Anne’s webinar gave you a good idea on how to handle indexing your paper files into Paper Tiger by creating a Location for your Action files and a Location for your Reference files. Below is an example for your CD’s, and can be used to implement the same concept for your tapes:
Comment: I use Paper Tiger to keep track of car records and other hard items.
Response: This is a great example of Paper Tiger’s flexibility in getting organized!
The average person wastes 150 hours per year just looking for things. To make it worse, the average executive wastes 6 weeks a year looking for things!
Does that sound familiar? We know it does to many. Learn how take control of the clutter in your office once and for all.
THIS WEBINAR IS FOR YOU IF:
WHAT IS COVERED IN THIS WEBINAR:
Stephanie is a dynamic entrepreneur, nationally known speaker, author/publisher and productivity organization consultant, and business coach, and in addition a Paper Tiger Expert. Please visit www.CalahanSolutions.com to learn more about Stephanie and the services she provides.
About Stephanie Calahan:
Stephanie Calahan is The Business Vision Catalyst and founder of Calahan Solutions, Inc. She works with purpose-driven entrepreneurs, visionaries, coaches, consultants, health practitioners, authors, speakers and all sorts of remarkable service professionals who are experts in their field, to help them embrace their brilliance, leverage their business and get their message out with power, ease and joy; so that they can make a powerfully positive difference in the world, exponentially grow their income and enjoy a highly-successful and meaningful business… while working less. Learn how you can have more freedom in your life! http://www.StephanieCalahan.com
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Copyright Calahan Solutions, Inc. — All Rights Reserved
Simply put, organization is ‘finding what you need, when you need it, with little effort!’ Being organized is not about being perfect. In fact, it’s not easy for a lot of people. It’s about how your environment functions, not how it looks. The esthetics are personal choice, but the organization is functional, and directly impacts your quality of life.
So today we’re going to talk about:
- Time
- Space
- Information
So that you can get greater results with less effort! In my program, we have 6 solid strategies to help you unleash your freedom plan that allows you to do all those things that you haven’t been able to do. Obviously, we can’t cover all of them in detail today, but later I’ll share how you can know more.
You see people often ask me ‘what should I do?’, but the real question to ask yourself is ‘what WILL I do?’ And that’s what we want to explore today. So by the end of this session, you’re going to walk away with strategies you can use right away and I’ll also share with you how to move from where you are to where you want to be, and you’ll have some great next steps outlined.
There are top time-stealers and physical space, like I said, is the number one reason that people contact us. The physical set up of your office is important to the process flow of your day. Think of your space in varying forms of valuable real estate. Everything within your arms reach is your most valuable real estate. Do you keep paper work or reference material that you use on a regular basis far from your work-space? Does it get put away? The most frequently accessed items should be placed in the easiest reach and work out from that. Be intentional with how you set up your space. You see, people waste an amazing amount of time looking for things and that is space issues — whether it’s paper things or supplies or even electronic documents. I have some clients that will even recreate a document because they feel it’s faster than finding what they made the first time around. In fact, the National Association of Professional Organizers found that 80% of the papers that were filed were never referenced again largely because people could not find them.
Another way to look at the systems and processes that you have in your business, whether you are looking at the paper, or any other system or process that you have as you are evaluating the functionality of how your business is operating is by asking yourself these questions:
- Does it work?
- Do I like it?
- Does it work for others?
- How quickly can I recover?
I shared with you previously that the average person wastes 150 hours looking for things, and the average executive wastes 6 weeks every year just looking for things. The truth is every performance gap, every little inefficiency, every lack of organization or productivity, not only reduces the effectiveness of your business, it also steals time from your personal life. This is true for all business owners. The purpose for an organized and productive environment is to enable you to accomplish your goals and enjoy your life.
So what would that mean to you? What is your freedom plan? You have to take action to change your situation. The best way for you to move forward and take action is to have a solid plan for you situation. Click the self-assessment links below to get started today!
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Q: Please talk more about how to set up tickler files
A: Everybody has different ways of thinking and processing and working through information, so you have to decide if the pre-defined systems will work for how you think – if you have the same thinking style as the person(s) who designed the pre-defined systems, etc.
Q: Does Paper Tiger work with the Apple system?
A: Paper Tiger Online works on any computer with an Internet access including Mac. Our desktop, downloadable version of Paper Tiger is a Windows only software so if you wanted a version that wasn’t web-based, you would need to install Paper Tiger desktop onto a virtual Windows program for the Mac such as Parallels.
Q: I have had PT for 2 years but only use it on and off due to the lack of knowledge. I would love to get a one on one instructor.
A: Stephanie does conduct sessions in person and virtually, and from what I understand, these virtual sessions/days go very well. You’d be surprised what you can handle virtually. I encourage you to contact her directly to see what you might can work out with her for a one on one. Stephanie’s contact information can be found below.
Q: Already subscribe to Stephanie’s Twitter feed – a fan! Wish she lived in Ontario!
A: Stephanie does conduct sessions virtually, and these virtual sessions/days go very well. You’d be surprised what you can handle virtually. I encourage you to contact her directly to see what you might can work out with her. Stephanie’s contact information can be found below.
Q: Would like to be able to attach pictures to content description. Handy for storage boxes.
A: Utilizing Google Docs to upload your pictures to and putting your ‘keywords’ in the title of the picture in Google Docs, and then activating Digital Tiger, will allow you to conduct a search in Paper Tiger Online, and be able to see results from both your Paper Tiger indexed items and the items that you’ve uploaded to Google Docs, and therefore making the connection between the two.
Other comments from webinar registrations that may sound familiar to you. We wanted to include these so you’ll know you’re not alone in the daily struggle to get organized and stay organized!
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Copyright Calahan Solutions, Inc. — All Rights Reserved
You may already be familiar with the idea of using an indexing system to maintain better record management capabilities for your professional office paper files. In fact, you may even already be using Paper Tiger Filing System Software for document management for your office needs. On the other hand, you may not be familiar with what an indexing system is, how it works or what you can do with it.
The important thing to keep in mind is that you can use this same indexing software system to declutter your life and organize almost anything. If it can be stored somehow and numbered, it can be indexed. Also, the great thing about using this type of indexing system is that it works for anything that can’t be scanned. So while some people are converting their filing systems to a more paperless environment, it leaves them with no way to organize and index all those items that simply cannot be scanned, i.e., passports, contracts, binders, books, CDs, DVDs, etc.
You put papers in a file for your car repair and then stick the file in your personal filing cabinet and that’s the end of that. When your spouse has to look up the amount of the last repair for some reason, he or she may not know if you filed it under “Toyota Repairs,” “Sheila’s Car” or “Mechanic Receipts” or it could be filed “Auto” or “Car”, so you see it could take a while to search through the alphabet in your filing cabinet(s) depending on how many drawers of paper files you have. With Paper Tiger’s indexing system, you simply number this file to coincide with the number assigned to it from the software, type in as many of those key search terms you can think of and file it away. When you or someone else has to retrieve the file, you use the search engine and can locate the file in a matter of seconds. It’s a hassle-free way to make your filing system manageable.
You don’t have to do this with just paper files though. Maybe you collect antique dolls, have a CD collection that is growing out of control or want to be able to keep better track of what type of seasonal clothing you are storing and where it is. By using an indexing system you can make all of this possible. Take the clothing as an example, which can be really out of hand if you have kids and therefore a great deal of clothing to put in some type of storage.
You may end up with some bins in the basement, some leather coats stored in climate controlled storage away from your home and more hanging in garment bags in the guest room closet. Trying to remember where all of these items are scattered can become confusing. If you use an indexing system you can number the bins or garment bags, type the item and location of each into your Paper Tiger database and always know where your seasonal items are even if they are not in your home.
This can be an extremely useful tool for those who sell items on places such as eBay and may store the items in various places. Just remember to update the system when new items come in and when one sold or is moved to a different location.
Paper Tiger is an indexing system for your paper files or other physical items that has an easy-to-use search engine built in so that lost information is virtually eliminated in your home or office. You would simply type in the information into the database relating to your physical files or other items to get organized so that you can find what you need when you need it, without time-wasting searches.
So for paper files, you would keep your paper in its original form (you do not have to scan it) and use the power of the computer to index the paper files that you need to keep in hard copy format, and also be able to index other physical items as in the examples mentioned above. Paper Tiger can index anything that you can put a number onto!
When you’ve indexed your items into Paper Tiger, and you need to find an item later, you simply conduct a Google-like search in the database to find where the item is located.
This solves problems with filing or finding any physical item, such as:
If you haven’t already, please view our videos on our Why Paper Tiger page, which may help you understand better how Paper Tiger works. Please also see our Not Just For Filing Paper page for great examples for indexing other items in addition to paper files.
During this webinar, Anne discussed the basic concept of organizing both paper and digital files. She demonstrated the following to show how to use Paper Tiger more effectively so you can get organized and be more productive.
Find Anything In Your Office In 5 Seconds or Less…Guaranteed! Watch the webinar to learn more.
As information, Anne is a professional speaker, productivity expert, professional organizer and author. If you want to learn more about Anne and her services, please visit her website at www.StrategizeAndOrganize.com. She may be in Colorado, but she’s nationally recognized as an expert and works with people throughout the US in person and virtually.
You can contact Anne at amcgurty@strategizeandorganize.com or by phone at 303 881-0174.
See more information here on Paper Tiger Filing System Software for Document Management
One of the things about working with Paper Tiger and Digital Tiger is having a change in your attitude in how you work. Getting organized is not just about making things pretty. It’s about having a methodology – a system to help you change your habits to be more efficient.
I think it’s important to know that when I started my business, Strategize and Organize, back in 2002, I was floundering wondering how was I going to help my clients get organized with their paper files. I was an executive in the corporate world for almost 20 years, and I always had tremendous staff and assistants to help me with my own paper flow. But the world has changed and for the most part, we are all doing it on our own now. Everyone has their own way of thinking about filing. Well Paper Tiger is unique in that it doesn’t matter what you name the file, because you can recall it later based on the keywords that you type in when you set up a file.
Say for instance you have a file and the first one is regarding your car. People could name that file Car, Auto, Ford, or Vehicle. So you could possibly have 3 or 4 possible names for the same file. In a traditional filing system, when you go to look for that file, you might look under A for Auto, a little further back for Car, a little further back for Ford, and then a little further for Vehicle. So it might take you a few minutes to go through all your files, because you don’t remember what you filed it under. Nevermind if someone else needs to find it. They might just give up because they wouldn’t think to look under Ford.
So Paper Tiger allows you to set up a file under any name and then use keywords that will help you find it later. Kind of like a Google search where it goes to the index of all the keywords and finds your file. So that’s a little bit about the methodology.
Once you have a Paper Tiger Online account, you are signed in and the first screen you see is the Dashboard…..
On the right side column of the Dashboard, you will see where you can create a new database or import an old database. For those of you who previously had the desktop version of Paper Tiger, you can import your old database….
To get started, you want to create a new database. The definition of a database is essentially the organization or entity in which you are going to be indexing all of the files. Once you name your database, you will see a link to open that database from the Dashboard. You can have different databases for different things, such as your office files, your home files, etc. Or larger corporations might have a multi-user plan in which they want different databases for employees that do not share the same file cabinets. (Click here to see the advantage of having multiple databases.)
After your database has been created, you then need to begin to add Locations within the database. (Click here to see how Locations are defined in Paper Tiger.)
In setting up your files in an office environment, generally people think of their files as simply files. They really never thought of their files as a function….
Q: Are you saying that every piece of paper I receive I should scan and then enter into database, and then file, If I get 100 items a day to file, how much time does it take to enter every page? How much additional time does it take to enter the document into the database just for filing/indexing the physical paper file?
A: No, we are not saying that every piece of paper needs to be scanned and indexed into Paper Tiger to also keep the hard copy. You will first decide for each piece of paper if it should be kept in hard copy format or if it could be scanned and shredded.
Q: How do you activate Google Drive within Paper Tiger? When I go to Database preference I do not see anything about Google Drive.
A: Google Drive is currently only available in Basic and Pro plans. When you sign into Paper Tiger Online, click on the Accounts tab from the Dashboard and locate the link to activate Digital Tiger to your Google Drive. Then for each database that you want to show digital results as well as what you have indexed into Paper Tiger, you would go to the Database Preferences tab and select show digital results.
Q: If one uses a Back Up service like CARBONITE, does it back up all the Paper Tiger filings?
A: For the desktop version of Paper Tiger, the database is stored on your hard drive so in that case, the Paper Tiger backup database would be backed up to Carbonite. You can also choose to auto-archive a copy of your database to a specific location. Click here to see how to auto-archive your desktop version database.
For the online version of Paper Tiger, the database is stored on our secure servers hosted by Amazon, so in that case, the Paper Tiger database would not be backed up to Carbonite.
Q: Pictures. We have so many digital pictures. What would you suggest. Does Google have a area to upload digital pictures then search through Paper Tiger?
A: Google does have Google+ or Photos where you can upload your photos, but they would not be searchable through Paper Tiger. Paper Tiger Online currently will only connect to Google Drive. If you should upload your photos to Google Drive, you would need to change the title of the photo to include keywords so that the Digital Tiger feature would have words to search.
Q: What if Google goes down? Will the Google files be in Paper Tiger?
A: The Google Drive files will not be in Paper Tiger, since Paper Tiger is not the digital files storage location. Google Drive is the digital cloud storage location. Google promises 99.9% uptime.
Q: I have a few locations. Should they actually have their own database?
A: Not necessarily. Having different databases is only advantageous if you want to keep different filing systems separate and do not want to search for all files in all databases at one time. For example, if you have an Office database and a Home database, you do not want items to pop up from your Office database when conducting a search for an item in your Home database.
Q: The video on Paper Tiger’s website shows the exact physical location, not the name or type of files as is recommended in this webinar (Reference or Acton)
A: See this knowledge base article that describes what is a Location in Paper Tiger: http://thepapertiger.com/support/articles.php?id=205263&catId=230 where you’ll see that a Location can be named for the file type or to describe the physical location of the items you are indexing, so you are not limited to a naming system. Name the Location for how you think about the types of items you are indexing or the physical location of the items. It has even been suggested that a Location could be named ‘Ideas’ for indexing your thoughts/ideas.
Q: I can get to the Google Docs section, but still not sure how to get my files to be on line.
A: Sign into your Gmail account, then click on the Documents link at the top of the page, Then you can create, scan or upload your digital files to Google Docs. Also see videos on our Digital Tiger page at http://thepapertiger.com/digital_tiger, some of which we’ve copied from Google’s support. Also on our support portal, see 7 ways to easily upload your files to Google Drive
Q: How do you transfer documents from Word to Google Drive?
A: Sign into your Gmail account and upload & convert the Word document to Google Docs format. See Google’s support portal for instructions. Also on our support portal, see 7 ways to easily upload your files to Google Drive
Q: What is the Avery label # you use for the file labels?
A: Anne just chose Avery #5167 or 8167 which is the return address label size and can be affixed onto the tabs that come with the hanging file folders.
Q: Do I upload files to Google Drive with or without a folder structure?
A: Anne recommends structuring your Google Drive to be consistent with how you structure your digital files on your computer.
Q: Did Google Drive implement the drag and drop upload?
A: This has been implemented by Google and you should be able to drag and drop individual files to your Google Drive. File folder drag and drop has not been implemented as far as we can tell, but you can choose to upload an individual file or an entire folder from the Upload button. 
Getting organized and staying organized with paper files can seem difficult for most people, and therefore many companies are opting to go to a paperless office to get organized. This type of filing system may get rid of most paper in your office to make your desk look organized, but it can also add countless hours of document scanning in order to keep files up to date. Then there is the problem of renaming and finding the digital files after they have been scanned. So, how do you keep up with paper and digital files so that you can actually find them when you need them?
Paper Tiger Filing System software is different. It does not require scanning, but with the new Digital Tiger feature in Paper Tiger Online, this document management system can help your office have less paper and be able to retrieve the documents at the time you need them, whether they are in hard copy paper file format or digital file format.
Paper Tiger allows you to organize files in just a few moments by indexing those paper files that you need to keep in hard copy format. Digital Tiger, powered by Google Docs, is a free add-on with a paid Paper Tiger Online account (Basic and Pro plans for now), that allows you to connect your Paper Tiger Online account to your Google Docs account, then you will be able to search from one place to find both your paper/physical items and your digital files. The way Digital Tiger works is described on our web page at http://www.thepapertiger.com/digital_tiger.
To prepare for Digital Tiger, you can create, scan or upload your digital files to Google Docs format from your Gmail account. Google Docs is the online storage for your digital filing system. Again, Paper Tiger is for indexing the paper files that you need to keep in hard copy format and other items, such as passports, instruction booklets, or CDs, DVDs, Books, home or office inventory and/or storage, etc., that just can’t be scanned.
Once you have set up your Paper Tiger Filing System account, it is time to start filing and organizing. It doesn’t matter how many files you have, Paper Tiger Filing System software can help you to get organized. We even provide tips and helpful hints and online video training for free to help you get started. For instance, we recommend starting with the files that you use the most and then adding a little more each day. Deciding with each file whether you need to keep it in hard copy file format or if you can scan and shred it. Before you know it, you will have a document management filing system that works and makes sense.
For the paper files that you need to keep in hard copy format and other physical items, first you will create a ‘Location’ within the software’s database which will coincide to your physical location. Then, you decide how many folders or items you want in this Location. You can add more later if you need to. In the database, each row corresponds to a hanging file folder* in your desk drawer, file box, or filing cabinet. You set up numbered folders in advance (“Reference 1, Reference 2,” etc.), by printing tab labels from the software for this location and placing the tabs in your hanging folder plastic tabs. Once this is done, you type in information relating to each document in the database file location.When you file something, you type in a primary name in the database’s Item Name section, such as “Car Insurance.” Then you have a keyword field for all of the phrases you can think of that relate to that set of papers (“Honda, State Farm, Auto, Vehicle,” etc.)
You can give the document any name you want without any worry about finding it later because the keywords you type in that describe all documents that you put in your hanging file folders will work much like a Google search later when you need to find a file. Now, place your document (or documents relating to the same subject) in the corresponding hanging folder. Just like that, your filing cabinet is organized without all the extra time of scanning, electronic storage space and hassle that scanning presents. For documents that you want to add to the same file, simply edit the Item and add additional keywords necessary that relate to the new document(s) being filed. As you can see in the file folder picture above, you can even sub-divide with manilla folders. We simply added keywords for each manilla folder in the respective item number in the database. For example, in Reference 10, there are manilla file folders and keywords for Fedex, UPS, USPS, sub-dividing documents relating to each shipping service, and the Item Name in Paper Tiger is ‘Shipping Information’.
When you need to retrieve a file later, you just conduct a Google-like search in the software database for the keyword you’re thinking it might be filed under, and it tells you which folder to grab. You can retrieve anything from your file drawer in just a few seconds, as fast as you could Google something.
*When indexing other physical items, each row in the database corresponds to the item being indexed.
* You can’t decide what to name something: Since you are normally limited to what fits on the little folder tab with traditional filing systems, you must be succinct when naming a file folder. Sometimes paper files simply defy classification and are very difficult to name, with many subjects represented in one article, for example. With Paper Tiger, you can keyword all of those things and you’re covered.
* You don’t like slowing down to make new folders when you need to file: Using this filing system software, you easily create numbered hanging folders in advance, so you can have as many open hanging folders sitting there waiting in your filing cabinet as you like. When it’s time to file, it takes a few seconds to just type an item name and keywords relating to the documents and drop them in the folder. Some people are uncomfortable seeing only numbers in their file drawer. If you think about it though, wouldn’t it be wonderful to not have to re-do labels when you change your mind about a folder? Or have to create a new label every time you need to file a new document. It’s a shift in thinking to realize that your papers are supposed to be randomly filed and like folders may not necessarily be physically next to each other, but because there is a printed file index report, it is something that is easy to overcome.
* You can’t remember where you filed something: Because of the keywording and searching, you no longer have to remember this kind of information in your head. You can find it in just a few seconds by searching in the filing system software database or looking at the file index that can be printed from the database.
* People sharing files who cannot read minds: If the filing system is in someone else’s head, and that person goes on vacation or has to be out for medical leave or worse yet, leaves the company, you can’t find anything. This system prevents people from being in the dark about where things are.
In addition to organizing the paper files that you need to keep in hard copy format, you can also organize other items with Paper Tiger Filing System software such as passports, office supplies, CDs, DVDs, books, home or office inventory, and items you have in storage, etc. See our Not Just For Filing Paper webpage.
Items are right where they should be and are easier to find and you’ll know where to put the items back when they need to be returned. This makes the Paper Tiger Filing System much more than just an office management system; it is a life management system to help you get organized and stay organized!
Every business continues to look for ways to improve the way they operate. The ultimate goal of a successful business is to keep the customers satisfied. Improving the functionality, customer service and organization are all small ways that work together to make the company able to keep customers
happy and coming back for repeat business.
What you may not already realize is how keeping your company organized with something as seemingly simple as an indexing system can help improve upon your business and the way it operates.
While the following list includes four ways Paper Tiger Filing System software can improve your business, there are plenty more than this.
Trying to make sure everyone in a business or office is able to find certain merchandise or documents can cause a great deal of hassle when your business is not organized in a way that everyone knows where everything is so they can find what they need when they need it and then replace the item back where it belongs. This can be especially true of new hires, and this frustration can even lead to high turnover rates. If any employee can locate an item or file by conducting a Google-like search in the indexing system database, this cuts down on time and keeps your business running that much more smoothly and efficiently.
Whether you simply need to keep up with supplies for your office or other types of supplies to conduct your business or you have product stock that you need to keep track of, doing inventory on a regular basis helps a business be aware of how accurate their inventory lists are compared to what is actually in stock. Having an organized indexing system makes doing regular inventory checks that much easier. Too many businesses put off doing this type of inventory check at all because it can be time consuming, but it isn’t if you use a system to keep track of all of your merchandise. This helps cut down on internal theft and also keeps your records updated so you never have to cancel an order because the ordered merchandise isn’t actually in stock. When you lose one sale because you ran out of inventory and had to contact the buyer, you more than likely lose that customer for all future orders too. All of these can really begin to add up, not to mention cause your business to get negative feedback, which can have a huge impact. If you keep your indexing system current every time you add or remove merchandise you can eliminate the problem of running out of something and not knowing in enough time to reorder.
With Paper Tiger, whether you are organizing your paper files in your filing cabinets or you’re organizing your office supplies, you can index anything that you can put a number onto because Paper Tiger is not just document management software. Having a system in place that gets your business organized will help you and your staff so you won’t have to waste time searching for things because you all don’t think the same way. Following are other ways that Paper Tiger can help alleviate the problems of disorganization and help staying organized easier to maintain for the entire staff:
No one likes tax time, but it happens each year regardless. Whether you have your own bookkeeper, use an accountant or plan to file yourself , you can have everything you need when it comes time by keeping records organized with an indexing system. You can locate all the paper work when it comes
time to file, including employee payroll records and expenses. Also, should the need ever arise, if you are audited, you will be able to locate all the documentation needed to make it go smoothly.
Make your business the very best it can be by getting your indexing system set up and working for you today. Take a look at our article Customize Your Filing System with Paper Tiger’s Indexing Method and our Not Just for Filing Paper page to help you see the filing system possibilities. Getting organized can seem like a daunting task to tackle, but once you get started, it isn’t as troublesome as you may originally think. Once you have Paper Tiger Filing System software in place, it will make your life that much easier. Get organized today, and you can truly start noticing the benefits.
During this webinar, Anne demonstrated the following to show how to use Paper Tiger more effectively so you can get organized and be more productive.
Find Anything In Your Office In 5 Seconds or Less…Guaranteed! Watch the webinar to learn more.
As information, Anne is a professional speaker, productivity expert, professional organizer and author. If you want to learn more about Anne and her services, please visit her website at www.StrategizeAndOrganize.com. She may be in Colorado, but she’s nationally recognized as an expert and works with people throughout the US in person and virtually.
You can contact Anne at amcgurty@strategizeandorganize.com or by phone at 303 881-0174.
See more information here on Paper Tiger Filing System Software for Document Management
Q: If I convert a file to Google Docs format can I get the file back in the native file format?
A: Yes, open your Google Docs from your Gmail account, then the file you need, then click on File and select the option to ‘Download file as’ and you can select to download the file as whatever programs are offered for that file type.
Q: Is that rebooting or resetting for password available 24 hours a day?
A: If you don’t remember your password, you simply click on the Forgot my password link, answer the question and fill in your email that your Paper Tiger Online account is under, and you’ll receive an email with a link to reset your password
Q: There is concern about the security of the digital documents…. how secure are they?
A: See information regarding Google Security information that we’ve copied from their Security knowledge base.
Q: When scanning documents, do you always use PDF?
A: We do mainly because Google Docs will OCR the 1st 10 pages of PDFs when the file is uploaded, but may not OCR .jpg
Q: Do you know if there is a limit to space available per account.
A: We’ve captured some information from Google’s knowledge base regarding digital filing cloud storage space and limits and pricing tiers.
Q: If I were to switch from the desktop version to a web version can everything I have done be transferred to the web version?
A: Yes absolutely! You can import your desktop version database or have our support team import it for you. Email support@thepapertiger.com, attach the database and let them know what email your PTO account was created under.
Q: What if you have two different Google accounts
A: Paper Tiger Online will only connect to one of your Google accounts at a time.
Everyone knows one of the main benefits of getting organized is having a life that is clutter free. Believe it or not, though, there are many other less obvious but more surprising benefits that result from taking the steps to get organized. There are plenty of other benefits when you take the time to declutter but following are among the top picks.
# 1 — You Can Simply Relax
Studies indicate that even thinking about a cluttered area can make a person more anxious and stressed. For example if you think about going into your office, which you know is cluttered, you will immediately feel stressed.
# 2 — Achieve More Goals
Being disorganized tends to be an obstacle preventing you from reaching your full potential. Get organized, and you will be amazed at the things you will begin to accomplish simply because you can find what you need without a time-consuming search. You’ll be able to focus on the task at hand instead of scrambling each time you need to find something.
# 3 — You Can Have Greater Success
Whether you work for someone else or have a home office, getting organized results in better performance and provides a more professional environment in which to work. So if you want to perform better in the eyes of your boss or the eyes of your customers, commit to getting organized.
# 4 – More Time At Your Disposal
Being more organized means spending less time frantically looking for something. Get your things in order which will allow you to accomplish more in less time, and you can have more time for your family, friends, or even just for yourself.
# 5 — Be Proud Of Your Surroundings
If you are ashamed of people stopping by your home or office, then it is time to make a change. A good declutter can do wonders for how you feel about your personal or professional space.
How to Get Organized
One of the best approaches to take for getting organized is to implement Paper Tiger Filing System software, which was developed for getting paper files organized to be able to retrieve them when needed, but Paper Tiger is not just for filing paper. If you are trying to sort out your paper filing system or keep track of all your collectible dolls cluttering your home, either way an indexing system can help you make sense of it all.
Start by sorting out which papers go in which files or sorting items to be stored away in bins. For each numbered file or bin, you enter the information for contents into your indexing system including any and all possible keywords.
By doing this, you can later locate exactly what you need by conducting a simple keyword search. For example, you no longer have to try to remember when looking for records for your car maintenance if you have it under “Bob’s Car,” “Honda Records” or “Automobile Maintenance.” All of those can be used in keywords, and you or someone else can easily locate the needed documents with a quick Google-like search in Paper Tiger’s database. Take a look at our article Customize Your Filing System with Paper Tiger’s Indexing Method to help you see the filing system possibilities.
Getting organized can seem like a daunting task to tackle, but once you get started, it isn’t as troublesome as you may originally think. Once you have Paper Tiger Filing System software in place, it will make your life that much easier. Get organized today, and you can truly start noticing the benefits mentioned here as well as many others. Use Paper Tiger’s indexing system, and you can finally declutter your personal and professional life. You’ll be less stressed and more productive in no time!
These Paper Tiger Experts are authorized to sell, setup and convert your organization to the Paper Tiger software product line, as well as the highest quality implementation and training services available.
Paper Tiger Experts are independent businesses so please contact them directly for their coaching and consultation pricing information. Many Paper Tiger Experts offer an initial consultation at no charge.
Do you have a small space in your house that you use as a home office? If so, no matter how large or small that space is, from time to time you have probably found that you seem to be overrun with paper files. It doesn’t really matter how big a business is, there is still going to be a lot of paperwork around, from invoices to contracts and other important documents. These all need to be kept in order, and this is not always as easy as it sounds. But, it can be made to be quite easy with an online filing system like Paper Tiger Filing System software. This type of office management software is not going to allow you to eliminate your paperwork, but it will allow you to be able to store the paperwork away and access all of the files you need in a matter of seconds.
In order to have an organized filing system for your home office or other company office, you will need to first make decisions about the paper that comes into your office.
For those paper files that you need to keep in hard copy format, index the item name and keywords into Paper Tiger. Then for your paper files that you do not have to be kept in hard copy format, scan them, then upload to Google Docs which will be your digital file storage location. Note that some scanners will scan directly to Google Docs, so check with your scanner manufacturer to see if there is an update to allow you to skip the uploading step. For these documents that you’ve scanned, you can then decide to shred or recycle them.
Activate Digital Tiger by connecting your Paper Tiger Online account to your Google account. Digital Tiger is a free add-on with a paid Paper Tiger Online account (Basic and Pro plans for now), to connect your Paper Tiger Online account to your Google Docs, then you will be able to search from one place to find both your paper/physical items and your digital files. More information can be found on our Digital Tiger page.
To prepare for Digital Tiger, you can create, scan or upload your digital files to Google Docs format. Again, Paper Tiger is for indexing the paper files and other items that you need to keep in hard copy format, such as passports, instruction booklets, or CDs, DVDs, Books, home or office inventory and/or storage, etc. If there are some documents that you’ve scanned but still need to keep in hard copy format as well, you can also index them into Paper Tiger, so when you search for a keyword, you’ll be able to see that you have a copy in your physical file cabinet and you also have a digital copy of that file in your Google Docs.
So file your paper files as you normally would, but simply index the documents adding all necessary keywords you would relate to the documents into the paper filing system software as you file them into your filing cabinet. If yours is a business that has only one employee – you – there is a lot of work to be done, and you won’t always have the time to search through stacks of papers just to find one thing in particular.
You will be able to quickly find any file at the time you need it, whether you have the file in paper form or if you have digitized the document to a digital file in Google Docs.
It doesn’t matter if yours is a small business that you run out of one room in your home or if you work in a large corporation. Businesses of all sizes can benefit from using this online filing system. This type of software is excellent for helping companies and employees with time management, because they can use the time they would have wasted searching for files to do other things that are more important. Any business owner, no matter how big their business is, loves to find ways to save time and money, and using office management software to organize paper files is an excellent time saving tool. The software is easy to set up and use, and all you have to do is make sure that every new paper document that comes into your office that you make the decision whether you need the file in paper hard copy format or if you can shred it after scanning and uploading to Google Docs.
If you need to keep in hard copy format, index the information into Paper Tiger. Then, you can file the paper document into the corresponding hanging file folder and not have to worry about where you put it when you need it later. And those documents that can be kept in digital file format instead, scan to Google Docs and shred it.
Either way, implementing Digital Tiger, powered by Google Docs, with Paper Tiger Online, you may not be completely paperless, but you’ll have less paper and you will be able to Find Anything In Your Office In 5 Seconds or Less…Guaranteed!
Since 1998, Paper Tiger has been helping tens of thousands of businesses, professionals and individuals simplify their organizational and hanging file systems. Prior to Paper Tiger, there were only five possible solutions to dealing with the world of paper management. First, let’s take a quick look at those.
So, it’s exciting to think about what that could mean for the introduction of options such as Digital Tiger. This system will enable users to “Find Anything in Your Office in Five Seconds or Less… Guaranteed.” And, imagine being able to access your information from anywhere with an Internet connection.
With Digital Tiger, you can index your paper files that you need to keep in hard copy format into Paper Tiger Online, and scan your paper files that you no longer need in hard copy format, then upload the PDF to Google Docs where it will be digitally stored, with other digital files you’ve uploaded, converted or created in Google Docs format — all in an affordable and efficient Gmail Google Docs digital filing cloud storage account.
Digital Tiger, powered by Google Docs, is designed to work seamlessly with Paper Tiger Online, and is now available in Basic and Pro accounts. Paper Tiger Online will now connect to your Google account, making it Digital Tiger so that you can find all of your information with just one search — your digital files that are stored in Google Docs, and your paper and other physical items indexed in Paper Tiger.
We have put together two new Digital Tiger training screen casts. These will help you easily learn how to set up and start using the new Digital Tiger. See our Getting Started with Digital Tiger for a Paper and Digital Filing System for instructions and to review these new screen casts.
Don’t forget to let us know about your initial experience connecting to and using Digital Tiger by completing the survey.
This year, stick to the resolution to declutter your life by getting truly organized. It’s probably a task you have been putting off for ages because it seems like such an overwhelming task, yet can be such a simple thing to accomplish. It’s all about taking the first steps to get started. The first step is making the commitment to clear the clutter in your home, office or personal space, so that your life will begin to be less stressful and productive. Before you know it, you’ll actually have more time for yourself.
Eliminate the frustration you experience every time you try to locate an important document and cannot find it amidst the disorganized mess acting as your “filing system.” We receive calls and emails all the time from people telling us that they have stacks and stacks of files that is causing more stress than it’s worth and need help getting organized. Paper Tiger Filing System software helps companies, non-profits, government agencies, professionals and individuals all over the world get control of something they hate…filing the paper on their desk & in their office, and can help with the life-cycle of document management, but it’s Not Just For Filing Paper.
Reduce the stress and anxiety you are probably feeling without even realizing it from having your home or office in disarray. Make this year the year you completely organize your life.
To stop the overwhelming feeling of getting started with a serious organizational system, start by making a plan of action — a step-by-step list of what to do and how to do it. Set goal dates for each step of your organizing process, and schedule time on your calendar for each step.
Working with paper files, documents and other items that traditionally get put into a filing system, you can start by going through one stack at a time, and decide what needs to be kept, which of these files are actionable and which ones just need to be filed for future reference, and which items should be tossed. Then index the paper files by typing in any possible keywords that could be used for each file so you can retrieve the item when needed by conducting a Google-like search in the database. Paper Tiger will assign a file number for each hanging file folder to match the item number in the database. You can add to those items in the database by simply editing the item and adding any new keywords relating to the new document being filed, and place it in the correlating file folder.
Of course for some people, the only way to make it happen is scheduling the time on the calendar, and simply diving in and getting the job done.
Whatever approach works for you is the best way to start, but just make sure to actually get started. By making and committing to a plan, you ensure that you will stick to your resolution. Please also take a look at our article Customize Your Filing System with Paper Tiger’s Indexing Method to help you see the filing system possibilities.
Using a document management system is the best way to get and stay organized. The great thing is, you can use this same type of organizational system for things other than paper filing. Typically, you use an indexing system to control your document management system, but this same method can be used for almost anything causing clutter in your home or office. If it can be cataloged and numbered, it can be organized by using Paper Tiger’s indexing system.
If you want to organize other items in addition to paper files, you can start by separating these things into boxes or bins, whatever is appropriate for the types of things that you’re organizing. Using the same approach as with your paper files … go through the items and decide what needs to be kept and which items should be tossed, given away, or collected in a box for a yard sale.
Whether it is your DVD collection, books, even your seasonal decorations, you should use this opportunity to get rid of or sell the ones you no longer need.
From here, you use the indexing system to type in any possible keywords that could be used for each physical item you’re indexing so you can retrieve the item when needed by conducting a Google-like search in the database. You would affix an item number label to the item or box to match the item number in the database.
With Paper Tiger Filing System software, you have a document management system that will enable you to finally declutter and live an organized life. You will be able to find what you need, when you need it and be more productive, less stressed and have more time for yourself in no time!
Digital Tiger, powered by Google Docs, is now available in Basic and Pro Paper Tiger Online accounts. Paper Tiger Online will now connect to your Google account, making it Digital Tiger so that you can find all of your information with just one search — your digital files that are stored in Google Docs, and your paper and other physical items indexed in Paper Tiger.
We have put together two new Digital Tiger training screen casts. These will help you easily learn how to set up and start using the new Digital Tiger. See our BLOG post on these new screen casts.
In addition to the new Digital Tiger, the following enhancements have been made:
* Time zone can be selected from Database Preferences. We have chosen to make this per database since some companies have different databases in different time zones.
* Database can now be exported to Excel file.
* When editing an Item, the Location and Item Number show in the edit dialog box.
* When adding or editing an Item, clicking the X in the upper right corner without saving will present an error stating “You have unsaved changes. Either save or discard them before proceeding.” This will prevent the box from closing without saving your information.
* Dashboard enhancements:
> Option to minimize/maximize the Recent Activity log.
> Most recent blog post available with option to minimize/maximize.
> Link to Tutorials and Training.
We look forward to your feedback, which you can provide by completing the Digital Tiger survey or emailing support@thepapertiger.com. Any technical problems with the app should be reported to our support team, not in the blog comment section. If you happen to email us, it is always helpful if you include specific information including the Internet browser you are using and provide screen shots if possible.
Thank you for using Paper Tiger and Digital Tiger!
In this article, Rev. Robin Swieringa describes how she is using Paper Tiger Filing System software to index her extensive library and in her move from Canada to the United States. She will be so organized when unpacking in her new home! She won’t have to waste time searching through boxes to find something. She will be able to conduct a quick Google-like search in Paper Tiger’s database or on her file index report and quickly find what she needs.
I love Paper Tiger because I have a professional library of over 2000 books. In November, I began a project of cataloguing (or “filing”) the books in different bookshelf “locations” around our home. For each location, I then organized them by subject, then by author (so that I can also get up and physically look for the books I’ve owned for some time). Then I began assigning each book a number, and plan to assign new books consecutive numbers as they come in, regardless of subject or author, which I will cross-reference in the database.
After a couple of weeks into the project, we decided to move from Canada to the U.S. Although I’m tempted to drop the cataloguing in order to focus on packing everything else, I’m more committed than ever to completing the physical numbering of the books because packing and unpacking the books will be easier than ever with them numbered! I’ll be able to pack the books according to size and what fits into any particular box somewhat “in order” and label the packing boxes with the location and range of book numbers included. Then, when we unload the moving truck, we’ll be able to place the boxes in the correct “locations”, and I’ll be able to unpack the boxes and shelve the books in the numeric orders I’ve established by location! This will save many hours of re-organizing books after unpacking them.
Finally, I plan to catalogue my paper files before we move; this will help me both to purge what I really don’t want to move across the continent and to establish my new home and workplace offices in a jiffy.
By the way, for anyone moving from the U.S. to Canada, you are required both to number and make a list of every box you move AND to count and sort every item within each numbered box (e.g., “25 books and 100 CDs”) and include that information on the list of boxes, by box. Additionally, you must number and include every unboxed item you move on your list. Then, you must place a realistic dollar value on all the items you move. You are required to present your list to the Canadian border officials before they will authorize your entry into Canada. I now see that Paper Tiger would have been the perfect way to accomplish the numbering and valuations of the boxes and unboxed items, if not every item in each box.
Thus, Monticello could open a new “market” for Paper Tiger, if you haven’t already thought of it: Human Resources departments of companies that move workers internationally. Although they may have moving companies doing the boxing and listing of boxes, etc., the workers being moved might find cataloguing their possessions valuable, as well.
Thank you for a great and tremendously useful product!
Rev. Robin Swieringa, M.Div.
Paper Tiger Professional licensee
Edmonton, AB T5W 0B5
Canada
From dental offices to law enforcement agencies, almost all organizations and offices require a filing system of some sort. The issue can become troublesome however. Over time files become disorganized or put under different titles and not everyone knows what title to look for to retrieve the file. Hire someone new and just the time it takes to explain the filing system or for the new hire to actually work with it and make sense of it, can be costly man hours. Not to mention, that one person in the office who knows where everything is, goes on vacation or has to be out of the office for any length of time, and the frustration builds when documents can’t be found.
The paper filing system is an important task for any organization because retrieval is crucial. Without all these important documents organized properly, your company would be in chaos and could cause legal trouble. Come tax time, being able to get to all files necessary is what will make your timely tax preparation submission possible. Ever get audited and find yourself unable to locate certain records or receipts, and you could find yourself in trouble with the IRS.
Without an organized filing system you can’t accomplish what you need to in a timely manner. It is estimated that the average person wastes 150 hours per year looking for lost information.
With Paper Tiger Filing System software, you can declutter your professional office space and be certain your paper files are in order and can be found when needed. Not only that but you can be assured you will have a method in which you can save time, be more efficient, and train others to use it in no time at all. In other words, you can redesign your paper filing so that the workflow of your operation will be in perfect working order and never cause you stress again.
Your document management can be made simple, as well as new and improved, by implementing an indexing system for your paper files to remember for you where everything is! By using this type of document management software, you can have your hanging file folders numbered instead of trying to decide whether to alphabetize or what type of name to give something that everyone will understand and remember when searching for a file.
You simply type into the software database an item name and additional keywords that relate to all documents in each numbered hanging file folder and file it away. You can give items multiple keywords such as “Jones dental records” or “Xrays for Bob Jones” and any other keyword that would relate to the contents of the folder. By doing this, no matter what a staff member types in for a search term, he or she will be able to find the file with no problem. This enables anyone to find anything using this simple to use style of document management.
One of the great things about this type of indexing system is you can also use it for so many other things for both your professional and personal life. You can imagine how much easier it can be to declutter all aspects of your life by using this type of filing system. You can keep track of bins of collectibles or boxes for seasonal clothing or archive old paper files to an off-site storage and still be able to locate exactly where an item is with just a quick search in the database. As long as it can be numbered, it can be documented or indexed in Paper Tiger Filing System software.
In this article, Linda Cossel says she’s retired, however in her retirement, she is a Wedding Minister, a writer, a hostess, and a Computer Graphics Designer. Wow! That’s a lot to keep up with! How does she do it? Well, read on to see how Linda uses Paper Tiger Filing System software to stay organized in every area of her life! How many jobs do you juggle and have to keep track of things in your work and personal life?
I use Paper Tiger in several ways! First, I have a very busy retired life. I am a wedding minister, a grant writer, a writer, hostess and computer graphic designer for a restaurant. I also have an actual file cabinet that I store papers in and I have a virtual file cabinet where I store word processed documents.
As a wedding minister, I have to keep track of marriage licenses. I also have to store business cards for other wedding services so that I can refer my brides to them. In addition, I have to write numerous different ceremonies for my brides. I store the licenses and business cards in my file cabinet (tab no 27 and 6) and the ceremonies in my virtual file cabinet (tab 27 also).
As a grant writer, I need files for active, reference, and archived grant information. Under my active grants title, I have folders for all the grants that I am working on. Under the research title, I have information on local granting agencies, forms that I might use while working on grants, and any other information that I might need to write a grant. Under the archive area, I keep all past grants that have been accepted or denied. These are all virtual files on my computer set up with numbered folders just as if I were actually setting up a physical file cabinet.
I keep all my writing information and research in virtual files, as well as all my graphic design work. I simply set up a folder with a title, and then add 50 subfolders with numbers. In Paper Tiger’s database, I list all the subfolders so that I know exactly where I have stored all my work. This has greatly helped me to organize all the stuff on my computer and make it so easy to find!
In my actual file cabinet, I keep all the stuff that comes in the mail or that I collect in my Paper Tiger folders. I also keep a current print out of my File Index report from Paper Tiger in the top drawer for easy access. As I add to the folders, I write on the lines of my printout the new files and when I have time, I add them to the Paper Tiger program on my computer.
Before I started using Paper Tiger, I had so many piles and never could find anything. Just keeping all my business cards together was horribly challenging. Now, I have a place to put them so that they are available at a moment’s notice.
Recently, when my husband passed away, I had so many items that had to be dealt with from his estate. I filed all the papers and notices in the Paper Tiger filing system and when the different deadlines came up, I had all the death certificates, cards, and other paperwork I needed at my fingertips.
Paper Tiger has organized my unorganized house! I can find anything I need instantly and add new files just as quick. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate being able to finally find the papers that used to be in piles everywhere in my house!
Linda C. Cossel
Wedding Minister/Writer/Hostess/Computer Graphics Designer
Sarek: Spock, you are fully capable of deciding your own destiny. The question you face is: which path will you choose? This is something only you can decide.
Star Trek the Movie
