Want To Stop Wasting Time Looking For Files?

If you've ever spent the better part of an afternoon trying to find the right version of a file to send a co-worker or email a prospect, you're not alone.

In a Nintex survey of 1,000 diverse employees conducted in 2018, 49% said they had trouble locating documents on a regular basis.

And according to IDC data, the average knowledge worker spends about 2.5 hours per day searching for information. That's close to 30% of the work day!

Clearly, this is an office-wide epidemic.

Fortunately, there are some real solutions to help you keep track of documents better and work more efficiently.

Use The Taskbar Search Feature in Windows 10

If you've made the switch to Windows 10, locating documents can be quickly accomplished by performing a search from the taskbar:

1. Type the name of a document (or a keyword) into the search box on your taskbar. 2. View the results displayed under Best match.

You can also open File Explorer from the taskbar, or right-click on the Start menu and choose File Explorer there. You can choose to search all devices and drives on your computer, or specific folders like Documents.

OneDrive Makes It Easy to Find Shared Files

Saving files to OneDrive is a great cloud solution to enable file opening from anywhere on your PC or mobile device.

You can also use OneDrive to see a list of every file you've shared. OneDrive for Business users can even see files people have shared with them in a separate tab.

To access this feature, look for the menu item called Shared.

Use Quick Access in Windows 10

Quick Access appears with a little star at the top of your folder list in File Explorer.

This area brings files you recently opened, and folders you use often, to the default File Explorer view for easy location.

Pro tip: You can even pin (or un-pin) folders in Quick access.

File Organization Tips

While shortcuts and search bars are great, a little organization goes a long way in making files quicker and easier to access. Here are some tips for managing your files.

1. Put related documents in main folders with easy to recognize names.
2. Use sub-folders within main folders to cut down on document clutter.
3. Every other day, delete or move the contents of your downloads folder.
4. Stop saving things to your desktop.
5. Stop saving things to your PC, use a cloud drive for remote access.
6. Get rid of old versions and duplicate files.
7. Send shared links to documents instead of sending them as email attachments.

By maximizing modern file finding features, performing regular folder clean-up, and keeping files organized, you'll increase your productivity by cutting down on the time spent searching for the file you need.

Need a OneDrive expert to help with an office migration or document management strategy for your organization? Contact us today.