Tips for a Year-End Cleanup of Evernote (or Whatever Productivity System You Use)

As we near the end of the year, it’s a good time to clean up your Evernote files and getting your system ready for the new year. Here are some tips.

https://daveedwardsmedia.com/2023/12/18/year-end-clean-up-of-evernote/

Key Points:

Notebook Review Process:

• Evaluate the relevance of existing notebooks: Are they serving their purpose?
• Consider adding new notebooks for new projects or areas of life.
• Move outdated notebooks to an archive rather than deleting them, creating a notebook stack for archiving.

Tag Review Process:

• Review and potentially update tags associated with people and work locations.
• Assess the validity and usefulness of tags linked to the workflow and the Getting Things Done system.

Adapting to Changes:

• Reflect on changes in work and life circumstances that may impact the relevance of tags and notebooks.
• Example: Reconsidering the importance of an “office only” tag after transitioning to a home-based consulting business and teaching at a university.

Archiving for Reference:

• Create archive folders or stacks to store notebooks and tags that are no longer actively used but may still hold valuable information for reference.

Email System Check:

• Extend the review beyond Evernote to include the email system, checking for items that also deserve archiving.

Reflection on System Usage:

• Consider the overall effectiveness of the existing productivity system.
• Reevaluate the validity of concepts and tags, making adjustments as needed to align with current work practices.

Searchability and Accessibility: Archiving notes and notebooks doesn’t mean losing track of information; items remain accessible through search functionality.

Watch the video for more.