The Deletist

Due to the large volume of “stuff” we manage to accumulate electronically, getting rid of ROT is key to managing your information effectively.  ROT is an acronym we use in my profession when referring to information, or documents, that are redundant, outdated, or trivial.  Basically, the stuff that has so little value you probably wouldn’t even notice if it was deleted, except to remark on how much extra space you have.

Let’s break down the ROT so you can get started on Digital Decluttering.  Last week’s posting, Strategic Saving, offered some guidelines and tips on how to determine what to keep.  ROT focuses on what to delete.

Redundant – this refers to copies and duplicates.  It never ceases to amaze me how much duplication we accumulate digitally (or physically).  Sometimes this happens because we might forget where we put something, or what we named it.  This will often result in us saving the same thing again, maybe in a different place or with an altered name.  These duplicates do not need to be kept.  Delete them!

Tip: Technology can be super useful with deduping (i.e. getting rid of the duplicates), especially with digital photos.  Try searching for an app that works with your computer.

Outdated – this refers to information or documents that have expired, meaning their content is no longer timely or relevant.  Some examples of this may include document drafts (once the final is ready), obsolete versions (e.g. resumes), household budgets 2+ years old, anything time specific that has passed (e.g. season brochures, invites, or catalogs), daily news postings, etc.

Tip: Establish some guidelines for yourself about how long information retains its value (e.g. notices, catalogs/magazines, document drafts/versions, etc.).  Go through your backlog routinely (e.g. quarterly, annually) to weed out anything outdated. 

Trivial – this refers to information or documents that has little to no retaining value, but that we may have kept at one time because it seemed important.  Deleting this information should have no impact on your life.  Examples of this include product information (e.g. if you were thinking about, or bought something at one time), directories, reference materials, blank forms, and newsletters (especially if they are also outdated).

Tip: Be mindful about how and where you accumulate trivial items.  Create a temporary area for the trivial information to see if becomes important enough to save somewhere permanently.  If not, delete routinely (e.g. monthly, quarterly, annually).

The Deletist is about focusing on strategic saving and getting rid of the rest.  It can sometimes be challenging to figure out what should be kept and what can be tossed, especially when it comes to documents and information.  The volume of documents and information produced by each of us (e.g. emails, etc.) combined with cheap storage options, competing priorities, and a lack of awareness makes it easy to adopt a “Let’s Just Save Everything, Just In Case” mindset.

Although saving everything is tempting, it will eventually lead to challenges.  Saving everything slows down searches and makes the results less successful because there is more volume to search through to find one thing.  Strategic saving means you’re only saving documents that retain value thereby decreasing the volume and increasing the quality.  It means you are more likely to find what you need, when you need it.  Additionally, saving strategically means you have less volume to manage over time and are more likely to be able to keep track of it.

If your computer got corrupted or your email was hacked, would you know what had been compromised?  Would you know what to restore first?  Chances are, probably not.

People often ask me how to identify which documents and emails should be saved.  The answer is not always straight forward, but with a little practice and education, it becomes easier.  Here are a couple of tips based on my experiences to help you make that determination.

1.  Pay attention to documents you create and use in your personal life.  Although this won’t be all the documents that need to be kept, it will give you a good starting point.  Focus on these documents first.
2. Identify and protect your personal vital documents.  “Vital” is a designation that records and information professionals sometimes assign to certain documents without which you could not function.  Examples of this include, but are not limited to, forms of identification (i.e. passport, drivers license, birth certificate, SIN/SSN cards), active agreements/contracts/policies, a will and/or power of attorney, and ownership documents (e.g. car or property).
3. Decide how long information retains its value for you.  For example, do you need your resumes from 10 years ago?  This will likely change depending on the type of information, but will help you to establish some guidelines.

Before purging, it’s always good to establish criteria or rules to keep you consistent, focused, and moving forward.

With so many places for digital “clutter” to accumulate unseen without any noticeable physical signs (e.g. running out of space), it’s easy to dismiss it.  I recently ran out of space on my Dropbox account reminding me that it was time for deletion.

I had just returned from vacation and we decided to share photos on Dropbox.  Before upgrading the storage, I decided to try and make space.  I found lots of folders full of ROT* (i.e. code for redundant, outdated, and trivial) to delete.  I moved some things onto my computer.  And lastly I removed myself from any folders that I no longer needed to share.  The combined efforts freed up enough space to avoid the upgrade.

This small exercise in DropBox reminded me of how many other digital areas in my life are full of ROT.   I started wondering why is it so hard for us to declutter digitally?

Here’s what I came up with:

1. There’s a LOT of content to declutter, manage, and maintain.  It seems like there’s always new content to consider (e.g. bookmarks, contacts, social media contacts/content, cloud storage, etc.).  I often feel overwhelmed by the volume and the variety.
2. It never feels urgent.  It’s never a problem until it’s a problem.
3. It’s largely out of sight, making it easy to forget about.

These factors, among others, make it hard to find a starting point, or to feel motivated to start.

Here are some of my tips:

• Start with a problem area (e.g. my overfull Dropbox or a crowded desktop).  If it’s a general desire to declutter, identify areas to declutter, e.g. bookmarks, photos, documents, emails, contacts, etc.  Prioritize them.
• Space things out.  Don’t feel like you have to do everything at once.
• Define your criteria for keeping items.  I call this the “Strategic Save”.*
• Declutter in small quantities.  Pick a single folder, project, or group of photos to work on at a time and apply your criteria.
• See if you can accomplish things on your mobile device.  I often find waiting for appointments or taking public transit is an opportunity to clean out an old Dropbox folder or some contacts.

*If you already know what you need to do, but struggle with the how, check back for the next two posts, Strategic Saving and Getting Rid of ROT.

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