Don’t know everything - that is OK

This blog goes out to my mom.  She always told me that I didn’t need to have all the answers, I just had to know how to find them.  Of course, she was actually just hoping I would just learn how to utilize the library index card system or open our encyclopedias, but she did give me the lifelong ability to find answers.

Yes… things have changed a lot since my early days of researching questions.  Reference books no longer fill my bookshelves and articles I pulled from magazines no longer fill my filing cabinet.  But, truly, the concepts are the same.

I will start with my favorite way to find an answer - Google searching.  Yes, as some of you might know, this is sort of my superpower.  I spent years and years perfecting my ability to search Google. The trick is wording your search and then following the rabbit hole till you find the answer.  Sometimes I start with a simple word and see what comes up. The displayed links might lead me to refine my search. Depending on the need, I will change my search to be videos, images or all. And, depending on the reason for my question and the accuracy of the information needed, I will conduct more research to ensure the quick answer I found is actually the correct answer (as we all know - not everything on the internet is true).

My second way of finding answers - reference material. The most important thing to remember with reference materials is having a system you trust and understand. Nothing is more frustrating than knowing you saw that information, but having no idea where you put it.

Here are some ways I store my reference material, be it emails, pdfs, hand written notes, receipts, project documents, etc. If you utilize a different system, please let me know. I might love your way better and modify what I am doing. 

With all my storage areas, I have a main folder called “reference material” (or something similar). I then create specific sub-folders to make finding information easier. Important note: if you are saving things that might be important for years to come, ensure you have a good backup system of your electronic reference library(ies).

• Email:
• I tend to save things in my email folders that I think I might need at any given time. I am almost never without my cell phone, so I could retrieve the information more easily if it is with me. 
• Computer:
• If it is something that I will only need when I am at a computer, I save it to my computer folders. Sometimes I take a picture of notes I make on that happy hour napkin. Others are emails that I think I might need, so I just save them to a pdf and file them in the appropriate sub-folder. Some are pdfs I create of documents people send or invoices I receive from vendors. 
• URLs:
• I am a big fan of my bookmark bar in Chrome, but I also have some reference sites that I know I need just every now and then. I save them to a folder so I can find them easily.
• Paper Files:
• Occasionally I do need to save a paper file. I have a box of manila folders that I use for these documents and I either throw the folder in my filing cabinet or my fire safe.

I still keep a few of my favorite printed reference books in my library, though now they are more for looks than for necessity. They do bring back wonderful memories of past searches.