Organize Your Family History

Stay focused and happy while exploring your roots

Sign up for What the Pros Know: Genealogy Organizing Tips workshop

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Family Tree University is once again offering the online workshop I hosted, called What the Pros Know: Genealogy Organization Tips. The workshop is on sale now and will start August 27. In this one-hour workshop,  I interview four prominent genealogy experts. Each interview will focus on a particular aspect of genealogy organization. It’s designed to provide some great practical tips that will help you make your genealogy more organized and streamlined.

The interviews were recorded in January, and I created a Powerpoint presentation, with the salient points spelled out, that runs on your screen while the audio is played.

The experts are:

  • Drew Smith, on organizing the research process
  • Thomas MacEntee on using research logs
  • Joshua Taylor, on time management and staying focused and
  • Denise Levenick, on organizing family archives

Also included in the workshop is the opportunity to ask questions and have discussions in the workshop’s online forum the week of August 27. I will be on hand the evening of August 30 to answer any questions directed my way.

In the months since I conducted those interviews, many of the things I learned have popped to mind as I research and organize my research. These experts are so knowledgeable and I feel privileged to have had the chance to interview them.

Click here to learn more and sign up!

Join me for the What the Pros Know workshop!

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I was tickled pink to be asked by Family Tree University to host a workshop called What the Pros Know: Genealogy Organization Tips. In this one-hour workshop, which will start on January 29, I interview four prominent genealogy experts. Each interview will focus on a particular aspect of genealogy organization. It’s designed to provide some great practical tips that will help you make your genealogy more organized and streamlined.

The experts are:

  • Denise Levenick, on organizing family archives
  • Joshua Taylor, on time management and streamlining your research
  • Drew Smith, on organizing the research process and
  • Thomas MacEntee on using research logs

Also included in the workshop is the opportunity to ask questions in the workshop’s online forums; I will be on hand to answer them.

Click here to learn more and sign! [registration is closed]

It’s Organize Your Home Office Day!

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Thanks to an email from Thomas MacEntee, who is so organized he’s always on top of things like this, I learned that today has been named Organize Your Home Office Day.

In that email, Tom sent out a great list of resources for organizing your genealogy space. I am so grateful that Organize Your Family History is included on that list!

So, in honor of Organize Your Home Office Day, I challenge you today to look around your home office (genealogy or otherwise) and assess the following:

  • Are there stray papers that could be filed?
  • Do the items that are stored on your desk deserve to be there?
  • Do you have post-its or notes pinned to a bulletin board that have aged out?
  • How are you doing on office supplies? Are you about to run out of anything?
  • Do you have any shredding to do?
  • Can you put away items that belong in other rooms?

If you can say yes to any of those questions, I encourage you to pick three of them to address right now.

I’m convinced that most of these tidy-up type of projects take much less time than we expect them to. And they reap big benefits.

Two weeks ago, a TV reporter came to my home office to interview me for a story on paper clutter. (I’d post the link, except I haven’t found one yet.)

Looking at my office through his eyes, I saw all sorts of items that had made their way into the space that I’d barely even noticed. You can bet I put a little effort into tidying up my home office before he arrived. (I even bought some flowers!) That’s a picture of my desk that morning at the top of this post.

True confession: My desk looked great that day but as I look it this morning, two weeks later, it doesn’t look so great. As soon as I post this, I’m going to set a timer for 15 minutes and try to get it back into shape before the timer goes off. I think I’ll succeed. The place looked ship shape within ten minutes!

Even if you’re not reading this on March 14, I encourage you to do this assessment of your office and then take action for just a little while to address a few things on the list. Because really, every day can be Organize Your Home Office Day, can’t it?

How They Do It: Thomas MacEntee

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This year I’m adding a new monthly feature, “How They Do It,” in which I interview genealogy luminaries about how they organize their own genealogy research. There are so many people I admire in the genealogy world. I sent out a few inquiries to some of my favorites and was so happy to receive a positive response!

I’m kicking it off with none other than Thomas MacEntee, founder of GeneaBloggers , as as well as The Genealogy Do Over, among other notable contributions to the genealogy world. Thomas is a prominent speaker in the genealogy field and I know from having heard him speak on several occasions that he is very, very organized with his genealogy research.

Enjoy his pearls of wisdom. Check back on the first Tuesday of each month for a new How They Do It interview!

How They Do It: Thomas MacEntee

How They Do It: Thomas MacEntee

How long have you been doing genealogy?

I have been doing genealogy research since 1977, so close to 40 years

What’s your favorite part of doing genealogy?

My favorite part of genealogy is the problem solving/CSI aspect. Trying to figure out how everything fits together on records and family stories.

Do you consider your genealogy research well organized?

I consider my genealogy research very well organized, especially when it comes to the digital assets.

What type of software do you use for organizing your genealogy research?

I have various software programs that I use to organize my genealogy research. First I use my operating system Windows Explorer to rename and organize files and folders. Second I use Excel and a research log to track all of my information that I find online and in person at archives and repositories. Third I also take advantage of the metadata feature on specific files via Windows Explorer. And I have one overriding rule with my genealogy research: nothing goes into my genealogy database software until it is proven.

Do you keep a research log? If so, what format?

For research log, I have created my own template in Excel which includes helper tabs for citing sources in evaluating evidence. It is available for free at www.genealogyresearchlog.com.

Do you have a tree on Ancestry? If so, is it public or private? Why?

I have two Ancestry trees, both of which are public. One is my original tree, created when I was a name collector and has over 8000 entries. I have placed the word “unsourced” in front of the name of this tree. I also have a more current tree that has fewer than 100 people but all of the information is sourced and proven.

What’s your biggest challenge when it comes to organizing your genealogy?

My biggest challenge in organizing my genealogy research right now are the physical items. Many of them are just thrown into a holding box and I keep telling myself I will organize them when I have time. I really need to carve out some time during the winter to get these items organized properly

What’s your biggest piece of advice to beginning genealogists in terms of keeping track of their research?

My first piece of advice for new genealogists is to track everything. This even means negative results. Second treat every document and every record and every bit of information as if you’ll only be able to touch it one time in your life. This means extract as much information as possible from the document or record and cite your sources right away.

What do you think is the most important thing for people to do to stay organized when it comes to family history research?

Organizing genealogy research requires a plan; just like a to do list in genealogy is needed before you start your research. So I have a separate to do list for the organizational aspect of genealogy as opposed to the research aspect. These to-do items go on my project list and are tracked like any other task during my normal workday.

If you were starting out new as a genealogist what would you do differently?

If I were starting out as a new genealogist I think the first thing is I would try to find a mentor–someone who could show me the ropes. I think in today’s Internet age, however, it is so easy to find credible resources such as those at the Board for Certification for Genealogists and the National Genealogical Society that can substitute as a mentor for newcomers. Also, I wish someone had told me there was no easy button in genealogy!

Do you keep paper or electronic files (or both)?

I keep both paper and electronic/digital files but my files are predominantly digital. If I have a photocopy I will often scan it and add it to my digital library and dispose of the photocopy. The only paper copies I keep our original items such as letters, diaries, and photographs, as well as vital records that I ordered from various agencies.

Are you folder or binder person for your paper files?

I am a folder person, although I am migrating more towards being a binder person, using archivally sound materials such as binders and sheet protectors.

Do you use Evernote, One Note or any other electronic organizing system for your genealogy? If so, how do you use it?

I use Evernote, having been a One Note user in the early 2000’s. I use Evernote mostly to clip items from the web and to save them for research. I find managing a research log on Evernote to be very difficult.

Do you have a dedicated space in your home for doing genealogy research? What’s it like?

I have an office in the back of my condominium in Chicago where I’ve worked for the past 10 years running my genealogy business as well as doing genealogy research. It is a small space, roughly 10′ x 10′ with small bookshelves and various bankers boxes strewn about

Do you have anything to add?

I’m a firm believer that anyone can build good organizational skills and that organizing is a discipline that can be learned. My philosophy on organizing things right away is this: the more you put it off or delay it the more difficult it will be. That time spent reorganizing could be better spent researching for ancestors. Lack of organization basically squanders your precious time.

I agree wholeheartedly with Thomas’s contention that anyone can become organized. I think he’s spot on about the value of organizing things right away to avoid a backlog and maximize the time we have to spend with our ancestors. Thank you, Tom!