After completing my dissertation, I came to a decision.

To go paperless at work.

Here are the reasons why:

1. To be able to give students and faculty real life examples of how to do things digitally.

I’m the Digital Initiatives Librarian and it is my job to help with digital projects related to the library, teaching, learning, and research.   I think this experiment could assist me in the way I work with my user community in terms of instruction and advice.

2. To reduce the amount of items I must carry with me at all times.

I already have a full bag and purse that comes with me to work every morning.   I hope that by going paperless, it will reduce the physical burden that I am under just to walk in and out of the door each day of work.

3. To change the appearance of my desk

I’m what the personal information management literature calls a “piler”. I love using paper and I organize it by making categorical piles on my desk. The different piles and their locations on my desk help to remind me of important things I need to do. I know where everything is, but in shared work environment this system can be visually jarring and distracting for others.