My Attempt at the Alicia Parks Method
So, I heard about this thing, this approach people were calling the ‘Alicia Parks’ method. Sounded kinda fancy, but the basic idea someone told me was about simplifying how you handle, like, all the digital clutter from different projects. My own folders were a complete disaster zone, seriously. Stuff everywhere, duplicate files, things I couldn’t even remember saving.
I decided, okay, let’s give this a shot. Couldn’t be worse than what I had. First thing I did was just stare at my main documents folder. Felt overwhelming, honestly. Where do you even begin?
Getting Started: The Big Cleanup
I started by making a big, temporary folder. Called it ‘SORT ME LATER’. Then, I just dragged almost everything from my main project directories into it. Felt drastic, but the idea was to start fresh with the structure this ‘Alicia Parks’ thing suggested, which seemed to be about minimal categories and tagging, or something like that. The explanation I got was a bit vague, typical.
- Dragged heaps of files into the temporary folder.
- Set up just three main folders: ‘Active’, ‘Archive’, ‘Reference’. Super simple.
- Tried to figure out what went where. This was the tricky part.
The Actual Sorting… Ugh.
Going through that ‘SORT ME LATER’ folder was the real grind. Took me days, not even kidding. I opened file after file. Is this active? Do I need it for reference? Or is it just old junk to archive? I spent a lot of time just deciding. Renamed a bunch of files too, trying to make the names more descriptive so I wouldn’t have to open them constantly.
I remember hitting a point where I almost gave up. Found a bunch of stuff from an old client project. Didn’t know if I should keep it for reference or just archive the whole lot. Sat there for like an hour just looking at the file list. It’s tedious work, no doubt about it. You really gotta push through.
Did It Actually Work?
Well, kinda. The three main folders did make things look cleaner on the surface. ‘Active’ had only current stuff, which was nice. ‘Reference’ became a bit of a dumping ground for things I might need, and ‘Archive’ was for truly old projects.
But the ‘Alicia Parks’ idea, as I understood it, maybe relied on software or tags I didn’t really use effectively. I just used basic folders. So maybe I didn’t do it ‘right’. It wasn’t a magic bullet. My ‘Reference’ folder is still pretty messy if I’m honest. It’s better than before, definitely less chaotic finding current work.
So, Final Thoughts?
It forced me to actually confront the mess, which was the main benefit. The super simple structure helps a bit day-to-day. But maintaining it? That’s the real test. It’s easy to just dump things on the desktop again when you’re busy. I wouldn’t say this ‘Alicia Parks’ thing revolutionized my life, but it was a decent kickstart to get organized. Took way more effort than I thought, though. Just goes to show, there’s no easy fix for years of digital hoarding.
