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New Year Digital Purge Challenge


Originally Published: December 26, 2018


Do you tend to end the year with a purge so that you can start fresh in the new year?

You do a deep clean of everything from the pantry to your wardrobe, donating, gifting, and/or tossing as needed, and when you're done you feel freer, lighter, and excited that you've made room for all new things. 

BUT WHAT ABOUT A DIGITAL PURGE?


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Think about how much digital clutter we hoard between our computers & phones, especially if you’re a business owner and/or entrepreneur:

  • download folder (phone & desktop)

  • emails (inbox, spam, trash)

  • browser tabs

  • browser history & cookies

  • cloud based drive folders

  • photos (i.e. screenshots)

  • apps (phone & desktop)

  • unchecked reminders

  • texts & direct messages

  • downloaded podcast episodes

And that’s not even counting anything you might’ve accumulated for work… especially after nearly two years of most people being moved into working remotely. We're in a new era of technology, so that means most of us didn't grow up thinking about doing a digital cleanse — I know that it certainly wasn’t top of mind in my household as a kid — but how about we start a new tradition, k? 

Today I challenge you to start taking the first step in making room for new projects, contacts, memories, etc. in the new year.

Delete something — ANYTHING! — starting with your phone. What you can’t delete, create appropriate folders for and save for easy ^ efficient access. This might look like folders on your device or it might been migrating files you won’t need for a while to an external drive.

Every day next week, commit to deleting something else, and you'll be amazed at how much you've freed up by the weekend!

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Because we’re talking about a digital purge, it’s real easy to limit yourself to your devices — phones, computers — but since writing this post over 3 years ago, social media has only continued to have a more prevalent presence in our everyday lives & society. That said, clearing your follower/following lists, DMs, saved drafts, and whatever other clutter you might be hoarding in your social media accounts is just as important towards starting off the year with a digital clean slate.

So to recap…

  • start with your handheld/mobile devices — think phones & tablets

  • once complete, work your way to larger devices, like laptops & desktops

  • be sure to back up your devices to preserve files that are important but not urgent

  • do not be afraid to just let things go

After you’ve managed to get through everything — p.s. don’t be discouraged if this process takes you days or even weeks, depending on how many devices you have — try to schedule regular purges. Depending on what you do & the devices you have, monthly or quarterly will make the most sense. I am LONG overdue for a digital purge across my devices and may be taking the last week of the month to tackle mine (I don’t operate on a typical reset schedule).

Is this something you’ll implement so help get yourself gathered & together for the new year?

Happy purging!


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