Thomas Frank on the best way to organize your computer files

Thomas Frank is a productivity YouTuber I’ve followed for years (his channel sits around three million subs). In this 15-minute guide he walks through a dead-simple “tree structure” for everyday documents—no fancy metadata, just tidy folders riding on Google Drive. It’s aimed at general computer use rather than photo libraries, but the core ideas still translate.

Tools mentioned

• Google Drive / Google One – used as the root folder so everything syncs to the cloud
• Backblaze (or CrashPlan) – automatic off-site backup; cloud-sync alone isn’t a true backup
• Quick Access / Favorites in Windows Explorer or macOS Finder for one-click jumps to deep folders
• Data-curator File Tree – open-source template on GitHub for bigger, shared archives

Steps to follow (Frank’s workflow)

1. Build one root folder inside your cloud-sync drive (he names his simply Google Drive).

2. Create “life buckets” as first-level branches—examples: College, College Info Geek (his business), Learning, Life.

3. Drill down by sub-category:

   • College_ Info Geek\Content\Graphics\Branding\Llamas\Pixel Llama.png (actual path he flashes onscreen).
   • Use extra levels like Freshman / Sophomore / Junior / Senior to keep 40 class folders manageable.

4. Name files simply, not obsessively—enough context to make sense inside the folder.

   • Good: Pixel Llama.png
   • Over-kill he pokes fun at: 08_14_2019_CIG_Branding_Footer_Pixel_Llama_Draft_V4.png

5. Sync via Google Drive so edits propagate across devices and you can fetch docs on any laptop or phone.

6. Add a real backup (Backblaze) for ransomware, account lock-outs, or fat-finger deletes.

7. Pin shortcuts: star the current-project folder in Quick Access/Favorites so you’re not clicking through eight levels all day.

Advice (extras he stresses)

• Keep every file inside a descriptive folder—nothing loose on the desktop or stranded in Downloads.
• Your structure should mirror how your brain looks for things; it only has to please you unless it’s a shared drive.
• Stay expandable: new buckets or project folders shouldn’t break the logic.
• That GitHub datacurator-filetree repo is worth a peek if you ever need a heavier, media-centric scaffold.

Catch the full walkthrough (and his tree-anatomy analogy) here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKjRKZxr-KY (published Aug 2019).