Philosophy

What's the point again?

Before we go any further it's worth reinforcing the philosophy behind Johnny.Decimal.

This is all a waste of time if it doesn't help you find things quickly, with more confidence, and less stress.

People often ask about tweaking their Johnny.Decimal setup. I don't mind, adapt it as you please. But my core advice is always the same. Do whatever you need to do so you can find your stuff.

Limit your choices

We've all seen share drives with dozens of folders at the top level, that get worse the deeper you go. It's near impossible to find what you need. And every chance that if you do, it won't be the correct or only copy.

No more than ten

When you encounter a Johnny.Decimal system you are presented with, at most, 10 folders. The areas. When you go a level deeper, you are presented with, at most, 10 folders. The categories.

These limitations help you look in the right place. And not the wrong place. We can further improve discoverability by using an index.

Benefit from a little friction

When you don't need to consider a numbering system, it's easy to create folders willy-nilly. At the area and category level it shouldn't be easy – a little friction can be a good thing.

Creating a new category should be something that takes time. Assigning numbers, and limiting your availability to ten, forces you into this moment of consideration.

Once you're down at ID level it doesn't matter so much. You're in a category. You are, by my definition, organised. Create folders as needed.

Time well spent

Setting up a Johnny.Decimal system is certainly not free from a time perspective. You need to plan and maintain your system. It doesn't manage itself.

This shouldn't be a surprise. We manage more information today than at any point in history. If you want to be organised you should expect that you'd have to put in a little work. Why would it come for free?

This time that you spend is repaid over and over by the reduction in frustration whenever you go to retrieve information.