I Ditched the PARA Method: Here's What I Do Instead

For years, I was a devoted follower of the PARA method for organizing my digital life. Projects, Areas, Resources, Archives—it seemed like the perfect, logical system. I spent countless hours meticulously sorting my notes, files, and bookmarks into these four buckets. But honestly? After a while, it started to feel less like a tool for productivity and more like a second job.

The lines began to blur. Was my \'fitness journey\' an Area or a Project? Is this article I saved a Resource for a potential project or just for my \'Health\' Area? The constant mental energy I spent just *classifying* information was draining the energy I needed to actually *use* it. I found my \'Archive\' was becoming a digital black hole of forgotten ideas. Something had to change.

Why PARA didn\'t work for me long-term

I think the core issue for me was the friction. Every single piece of information required a decision. While this is the point, the rigidity of the four categories didn\'t match the fluidity of my thinking. My work and personal life are deeply intertwined, and the strict separation felt unnatural. I was spending more time shuffling notes between folders than I was developing the ideas within them.

The pressure of perfection

I felt a constant pressure to categorize everything perfectly. If a note wasn\'t in the right place, I worried I\'d never find it again. This led to a kind of \'organizational procrastination\' where I\'d let things pile up in my inbox because I didn\'t have the mental bandwidth to sort them according to the rules I\'d set for myself. It was a classic case of the system getting in the way of the work.

My \'aha\' moment: simplifying everything

My breakthrough came when I asked myself a simple question: What do I actually need from my notes? The answer was surprisingly straightforward. I need to know what I\'m working on *now*, what I\'m interested in *learning*, and where my valuable, completed work *lives*. That\'s it. Forget the complex theory. I just needed a system that answered those three questions instantly.

Introducing my \'A.C.T.\' system: Action, Collections, Treasury

From that realization, I developed my own lightweight system. I call it \'A.C.T.\' because it\'s biased toward action, not just organization. It’s incredibly simple and consists of just three top-level folders.

1. Action

This is for anything that has an active verb attached to it. It holds all my current projects, both personal and professional. If I\'m writing an article, planning a trip, or developing a new workflow, its dedicated folder lives here. Once a project is finished, it moves out. This folder is dynamic, lean, and always reflects my current priorities. There\'s no confusion about what I should be focused on.

2. Collections

This folder replaced \'Resources\' for me, and the name change is intentional. A \'Resource\' feels static, like a book in a library. A \'Collection\' feels personal and evolving. This is where I collect information, inspiration, and notes on topics that interest me—digital tools, marketing, sourdough baking, you name it. It’s my personal library of curiosities, not a rigid database of reference material.

3. Treasury

This is my favorite part, and it\'s my answer to the \'Archive\' black hole. \'Archive\' sounds like a place where things go to be forgotten. \'Treasury\' sounds like a place where valuable things are kept safe. When a project from my \'Action\' folder is complete, I strip it down to its most valuable components—the final deliverables, key insights, and important contacts—and move that lean folder to the Treasury. It\'s not a graveyard; it\'s a highlight reel of my best work and knowledge, easily searchable and ready for future reference.

Honestly, switching to this simpler system has been a breath of fresh air. It\'s flexible, intuitive, and takes almost zero effort to maintain. I\'ve stopped organizing for the sake of organizing and started using my digital space as a true partner in my work. Maybe PARA works for you, and that\'s fantastic. But if you\'re feeling the friction like I did, I encourage you to question the rules and build a system that truly serves you.