EMail…Computer Chaos Control

Jul 4, 2011 by Holly Ralston-Oyler

It’s Independence Day! Yes, it is the 4th of July in the US, but the independence I am celebrating today is the freedom of living without computer email chaos.

I purchased the book seven weeks ago. Feel in love with it six weeks ago after reading only a few chapters. Then I got sidetracked by life. Since then it has been staring back at me every day while propped up on my desk. The lasso on the cover kept saying over and over “I will get you at some point – just you wait.”

So, for the past ten days I have been lassoed to my desk designing the website and putting together the marketing plan. I’m not going to be the only person lassoed in my this computer chaos cowboy in fancy boots.

I even wrote several generic computer file posts to use on this site, but after reading them over a few times, they did not merit keeping  company with Lasso Boy. Problem is, I dove back into the book for more substance and have had a really hard time coming out of it.

Several weeks ago I did manage to “start” the computer chaos control clean up system on one of my computers and actually went to bed for several nights with an empty email inbox. Truly something I thought was totally impossible. And, I will have to admit, it felt pretty wonderful.

Today I switched computers and all chaos has broken out. I can’t find a thing – anywhere. So once again, it is back to square one of the Computer Chaos Control system. I will have an empty email inbox by tomorrow evening if it is the last thing I do.

Today I set up my files and the sub categories that will go into them – on paper. Since this computer is my Internet Marketing Computer, the files are a bit different than the first one I set up. I’m setting up the file structure exactly the same, the Computer Chaos Control system way – but sorting is a bit more timely because the current emails needing to be filed correctly are so different. In other words, I have to actually “think” again.

What triggered this spurt of energy and urgency you ask? Simple -  this morning I spent 90-minutes looking for the registration number for a piece of software I purchased several weeks ago and downloaded. At least I filed the software correctly and could find it in less than 10-seconds in order to install it. Then the whole process came to a sudden halt when that dreaded “number please” box appeared on the screen. I finally found it and the installation went well. Now all I needed was the email to get the links to the instructional videos that came with the software.  You guessed it – another two hours of hunting.

I refused to email the developer and ask for them to be resent. I was the one dumb enough to file the information in computer Siberia, so I’m the one that should have to hunt for it. Besides, I was afraid he would ask for the order number, and of course that was on an entirely different email. In other words, we could have been at this simple process for days. I a proud to say, I finally found everything needed to view the videos, but my mind was everywhere but on how to use the software. I was mad and upset with myself for not following through on this computer chaos control project when it first started weeks ago. I was beating myself up for the chaos my computer files are in and wondering why I let them get to that point.  Then husband-logic set in (I really hate when that happens). “Why don’t you just stop putting Band-Aids* on the situation and spend the afternoon rereading the book so you will do it correctly this time around”. Sure, easy for him to say. But it was a perfect excuse to escape the office for a few hours and enjoy the sunny summer afternoon. There is something about the sun kissing your face that makes everything in life okay again, even computer chaos.

Join me on this adventure and organize your computer files. Be sure to visit Computer Chaos Control and sign up for your FREE Computer Chaos Control Chapter on organizing your photos, audios, videos and program downloads.

*Band-Aids is a registered trademark of Johnson & Johnson.