Personal Document Management: How to Organize Your Files at Home

Personal document management doesn’t have to be a nightmare. There are quick and easy ways to organize your files at home so you can find exactly what you’re looking for within seconds.

Say goodbye to poor document management forever with these tips.

Document scanning & OCR

Let’s face it- no one likes clutter, and who has space for huge filing cabinets anyway? Digitizing your files is going to make your life so much easier. Plus, you won’t have to waste time looking for paper documents that may or may not be lost.

– Scan your paper documents: All you need to do to have electronic copies of your documents is scan your existing paper docs and save them on your computer. You can then get rid of your paper copy to clear up some space.

– Use OCR technology: If you want an editable version of your documents instead of just images, use OCR (optical character recognition) technology. Soda PDF offers this useful feature so you don’t have to manually retype your documents (mindless labor averted).

Digital filing

So, we’ve gotten rid of the filing cabinet. What now? In come your digital folders and sub-folders; your personal document management heroes.

– Create folders: Creating folders and sub-folders that clearly indicate what types of documents they contain (e.g., Budget, Invoices, Work Files, Taxes, Bank Statements, etc.) will save you time when searching for a particular file.

– Combine files: If you have similar files that can easily be combined into a single file, you should definitely merge them to declutter. Soda PDF’s merge feature can help with that.

– Delete useless pages: You can delete extra pages from your PDF file so you only keep what’s important. There’s no point in keeping pages you’ll never read through or need.

Quick search

How many hours have you wasted looking for paper documents? Probably way too many. If you have an electronic copy of your files, it takes a fraction of a second to find what you’re looking for.

– Run a quick search: If your file is available as a digital copy, you can use your computer’s search engine to find it using specific keywords. If you happen to know the file name, even better! No more rummaging through your dusty old filing cabinets or sifting through the piles of paper on your desk.

– Search for keywords within your file: Not only can you search for a specific document on your computer, you can even search for specific passages and keywords within your files. Most personal document management software such as Microsoft Office and Soda PDF have built-in search engines that will help you find what you’re looking for. You’ll never have to read through an entire document to find a single piece of information again (hurray!).

Annotations

Say goodbye to flyaway post-its forever. How many have you mysteriously lost over the years? Exactly. You don’t even know.

– Switch to electronic sticky notes: Doing so will let you insert your personal comments all over your documents. MS Word lets you add comments in the side panel, which is convenient, but we find sticky notes work way better.

– Use markup tools: Soda PDF has advanced annotation features that allow you to add your comments anywhere on your page. There’s also a highlighter tool that comes in handy if you want certain passages of your document to stand out.

Document security

Do you have confidential documents that shouldn’t be shared with others? Many people who take work home with them have these types of files saved on their personal computers. So, it’s best to use advanced security measures.

– Password protect your files: Soda PDF allows you to set 256-bit AES encryption level passwords that will make your files virtually impenetrable.

– Set permission levels: Aside from password protecting your files, you can set permission levels to control what other people can do with your file. For example, you can disable file editing or commenting.

Cloud accessibility

If you use cloud storage services and want to have some of your documents accessible from anywhere, you should use a personal document management software that has built-in cloud connectivity.

– Cloud integration: Soda PDF has integration with Dropbox, Box, Google Drive, and OneDrive. This means you can send your PDF files to your cloud folders directly within the app.

– Use a web app: If you ever need to edit your PDFs on the go, all you need to do is open Soda PDF’s web application and edit away.

Want to give Soda PDF a try?