Life of E's

Recently I presented a webinar using the Paper Tiger Software to manage paper filing systems.  One of our Life of E’s members who attended asked the following questions:

 

Questions:

 

I watched the Paper Tiger file webinar but am still perplexed how this helps with articles that I may need for various studies/manuscripts. 

 

I may use Article 1 for three different manuscripts so storing them in my binder for XYZ Study when I also need it for ABC study isn’t working. 

 

Would I store the article in Paper Tiger and then use the keywords? 

 

Do you store one article per folder or “per study”? 

 

Meggin's Answer:

 

This is a great example of what Paper Tiger is used for.

 

Yes, you would store the article in Paper Tiger and then use keywords. 

 

To store the articles I did a couple of different things (and the second idea was better when I finally did that).

 

First, I tried putting each of the articles in a plastic sleeve in a notebook and then numbering the plastic sleeves.  That was spending time making it all “pretty” and it wasn’t the first time (or the last) that I had wasted time like that!

 

Then, I started putting multiple articles in one folder (one number) in Paper Tiger.  Let’s say I was working on an article about using “change-ups” in the college classroom and how to keep students engaged and help them learn more.  I’d end up finding a bunch of articles while working on that project and they might all end up in one folder.  When I input them into Paper Tiger, I would have the name (not necessarily the whole title if it was SUPER LONG) but would have the key words or phrases from it and maybe an author if the author was one I was likely to remember because they wrote on this a lot.  This would all be in the keyword section.  Then, next time I was working on another article or a workshop I was preparing, when I’d search on a certain phrase or word, it would pull that up and I could go there and get the article.  But this time, I was using it for something else and potentially, I would add a keyword to that same file (or maybe not; just depended).

 

Question:

 

I currently put all the articles I am reading for a certain study in one binder. Would I put all of these articles in one folder in Paper Tiger or just file them and write different keywords and categories? I can see that I might code the keywords such as “Authority Gradient statistics” or “Authority Gradient Measurement Instruments” then all my articles related to those things would come up when I conducted a search. It seems that it may help with writing my manuscript – I would know which articles I wanted to use for statistics, which articles I wanted  to use for lit review etc. Is this how you did it as a faculty member? If not what did you do when you were faculty?

 

Meggin's Answer:

 

Yes, pretty much what you’re saying is exactly it.  I think you’ll love it.  I’ve helped a lot of faculty move to this system and often it was the articles and other materials like that which was the push to make the change.  It wasn’t their student files necessarily…it was this kind of thing.  How many times have we all ordered another copy of an article from ILL because we couldn’t find the one we had (or is that just me?)

 

This member also writes:

 

I want you to know that I have listened to the Productivity Hotspots twice now and WOW it has made a huge difference (for me). I am so much more productive using the Focus/Flow etc. calendar and the Productivity Hotspots!!  Thank You!

 

In additional to teaching the Paper Tiger Webinar I also taught two other classes that complement Paper Tiger in helping you increase your productivity.

 

Creating Grace, Space and Pace with Your Own Just Whelmed Calendar teaches you how to work with your planner and use your monthly calendar like a story board.

 

Identify and Capitalize on Your Own Productivity "Hot Spots" looks at those times throughout your days and weeks where you have the potential to be optimally productive.  These times are your productivity "hot spots."