Why I Quit the PARA Method (And What I Do Instead)

I was a true believer. For years, I preached the gospel of the PARA method to anyone who would listen. Projects, Areas, Resources, Archives—it was the elegant, four-part harmony that promised to bring order to my chaotic digital life. I set it up meticulously in my note-taking app, and for a while, it felt like magic. Everything had a place. But honestly, after about a year, the magic started to fade, replaced by a subtle but persistent friction I couldn't ignore.

The honeymoon phase with PARA

When I first discovered PARA, it felt like a revelation. The idea of organizing information based on its actionability was brilliant. My 'Projects' folder was buzzing with active work, my 'Areas' folder held the standards I was maintaining (like Health or Finances), and 'Resources' was a treasure trove of curated interests. It was clean. It was logical. I finally felt in control of the endless stream of articles, notes, and ideas I was accumulating. The initial setup was a joy; it was like spring cleaning for my digital brain.

Where the cracks started to show

The problem with beautifully rigid systems is that life is beautifully messy. The neat lines between PARA’s categories began to blur, and my once-effortless system started demanding more and more of my mental energy. It became a source of stress rather than a solution to it.

The 'Area' vs. 'Resource' dilemma

This was my biggest struggle. Is 'Personal Finance' an Area I'm actively maintaining, or is it a Resource topic I'm learning about? What about a note on 'Effective Communication'? It relates to my 'Career' Area but is also a general Resource. I found myself hesitating every single time I saved a note, which created just enough friction to make me not want to save notes at all. The cognitive load of categorization was defeating the purpose of quick capture.

Actionability felt distant

While PARA is great for organizing what you *have*, I found it created a disconnect from what I needed to *do*. A task for a project might depend on a piece of information buried in my Resources folder. The link between the information and the action wasn't inherent in the system; I had to manually create it every time. My system felt more like a pristine library than a dynamic workshop, and I needed a workshop.

My 'aha' moment and the system I use now

My breakthrough came when I asked myself a simple question: What if I organized not by the *type* of information, but by its *timeline*? This shifted my entire perspective from 'filing' to 'doing.' I dismantled my PARA folders and replaced them with something much simpler and more fluid, which I informally call a 'Time & Context' system.

Focusing on a timeline, not categories

My new top-level structure is incredibly simple: Now, Next, and Later.

• Now: This holds my active projects. It's the only folder I look at daily. The goal is to keep it as small as possible.
• Next: This is for projects or areas I plan to activate in the next 1-3 months. It's a waiting room, not a permanent home.
• Later: This is a catch-all for everything else—ideas, resources, archives. It's my 'cold storage.' I don't worry about organizing it perfectly. Its only job is to be searchable.

That's it. I realized I don't need a perfectly curated archive of everything I've ever read. I just need to find things when I need them, and a powerful search function handles that better than any folder structure I could design. This new system puts my immediate actions front and center and aggressively moves everything else out of sight. It's not as comprehensive as PARA, but it's faster, creates zero friction, and keeps me focused on what truly matters right now.