Yes, really. I'm going to give you some simple directions here to get a handle on your photos--to see, organize, access, preserve, and enjoy them--in just 10 minutes a day.
Find the video version of this post below. You'll also find a free printable with all this information at the end of the post!
Developing a routine leads to a habit. Maybe you have heard that a habit can be developed in 21 days or 28 days. According to the Harvard Business Review, building a habit isn't that cut-and-dried--there actually isn't a certain number of days or repetitions required to develop a habit because there are too many variables. One variable, they noted, is that it depends on if the habit is fun or not.
For example, I'm very confident that I could start a new habit of eating a Ferrero Rocher chocolate every night preeeeeeetty easily. They're delicious, it takes no additional work aside from buying them at the grocery store when I'm already there, and it would take me about 15 very enjoyable seconds to complete.
You might think that taking care of your photos is a lot harder than that. Actually, it isn't. For 2 reasons.
#1 It's as good as chocolate. Actually, it's better. Studies show that spending time with your photos boosts mood 10 times more than our traditional go-to mood boosts of eating, drinking, listening to music, and watching TV or movies. This same study found that looking at their pictures relaxed people--more than drinking wine and eating chocolate!
So, as I like to say, memory-keeping makes you happier than chocolate.
Reason #2 that you will find that memory-keeping is an easier habit to build than you probably think is this simple concept: momentum. Starting is actually the only hard part. Because once you get going, you'll be enjoying your photos, remembering good times, and finding that you're having a lot of fun with it. You'll look forward to it. And remember with The 10 Minutes Daily Photo Plan I've got for you, you'll be doing all this in manageable bites. That makes it entirely doable!
NOTE: I am a Forever affiliate (a decision I made because I love it so much), so you will find affiliate links in this post, from which I earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no extra cost to you.
The 10 Minutes Daily Photo Plan
This plan will probably take you 5-10 minutes a day--and I'd like to offer you a challenge. Do this for 6 weeks to help you begin a memory-keeping habit. See how you feel after 6 weeks. (And, then--please!--let me know!)
The 10 Minutes Daily Photo Plan is based on this advice from photo experts to preserve your photos in two ways digitally (as files) and one way in print. The plan also takes advantage of technology that provides you (and me!) with both convenience and quality, all the way around. More on that shortly, but first: here's the plan.
SUNDAY: Cull photos from the previous week. Delete duplicates, out-of-focus photos, and photos that aren't very important. Save favorites.
MONDAY: Upload those photos from the previous week (the ones you just went through yesterday) from your phone or computer to Forever and to your computer/external hard drive. (More about this in the Using FOREVER section below.)
TUESDAY: Add tags and descriptions to photos in Forever.
WEDNESDAY: Find a page/pages in your book to preserve the photos in. This is only deciding and preparing! (More about this in the Using FOREVER section below.)
THURSDAY: Put the photos in the pages, adjusting them as needed.
FRIDAY: Add details to the photos. This is sometimes called journaling or story. Your memories are what make the photos worth something.
SATURDAY: Catch-up! If you didn't finish anything this week, finish it today. OR set aside an hour or two to follow this same process for older pictures from last year or last month that you haven't preserved yet.
Of course, I'll give you all the details (with tutorial videos, too, if you need them) on how to do each step, but first let's think about how to find 10 minutes every day.
How to Find 10 Minutes
Sometimes we feel so busy that we aren't sure how we can find an extra 10 minutes in a day. There are lots of great ideas here for giving yourself more time if you need them. For now, let's just consider where 10 minutes might be lurking. 
- over lunch--fork in one hand, technology in the other
- first thing in the morning
- while dinner is in the oven
- every evening at a certain time (6:30, 9:00, whatever works best for you)
- 10 minutes less of Facebook/Instagram/TV/etc.
Where else do you think you could find 10 minutes?
Or, how about this similar idea? If you enjoy a little dessert or coffee after dinner, make that your memory-keeping time, too!
Using FOREVER for Memory-Keeping: Here's How To...
As I mentioned earlier, we're going to use some technology that's not only convenient but comes with some top-quality print products, unique photo storage guarantees, etc. So, these are the details behind the seven daily steps above.
TO CULL (Sunday)
- You don't need anything special for this (unless you need some perspective about downsizing photos--this is a good reference with some tips), so I'll just add: Remember to cull from both your phone and camera if you take pictures with more than one device.
TO UPLOAD (Monday)
- Today, save your photos two ways digitally, as experts recommend. One should be onsite (your house) and the other should be offsite (the cloud). If both are onsite and there's a disaster--anything from a fire or flood to a computer crash--your photos are sadly gone. So we'll take care of both digital ways here. I have an "easy button option" to simplify these two parts as well.
- Upload them to your computer. If you need some help with this, this basic article can help and so can the video posted below. If you prefer, you can save your photos onto an external hard drive if your computer doesn't have enough space.
- When choosing a cloud service, you'll want guaranteed privacy and security. Many people don't know that common cloud storage providers including Google, Dropbox, and Shutterfly, reserve rights to your photos and your data (meaning, they can sell them!) and also reserve rights to change their policies at any time (meaning, they can discontinue their services, delete your photos, etc.). It's best to buy--not rent--your cloud storage (here's why!), so taking all of those things into consideration, you'll want to open your free Forever account there to make sure your photos are safe. You'll start with 2GB of free cloud storage for your photos and videos, but you can buy more as needed. You'll be able to organize your photos any way you want in your Forever Storage--watch the How to Upload & Organize video here to see it step-by-step.
NOTE: You can upload photos at the Forever website on your computer, phone, or tablet, or you can get the Forever app, which makes this step and the next super easy and convenient. This short video gives you more information about the app:
EASY BUTTON IDEA: I have personally found it very easy and convenient to just upload all my phone photos to my Forever app and THEN open my Forever account and download them to my computer. It's just faster than uploading twice. Forever saves your photos in full resolution (some photobook companies reduce the file size and therefore the quality), so the ability to download back is a great backup for my computer, too! And my photos in Forever are triple-backed-up, so there's that!
TO ADD TAGS AND DESCRIPTIONS (Tuesday)
- Photos without names, dates, places, and details are worth very little. If you don't know who is in the photo or why it was taken, the photo loses its value. You might think you'll always remember, but trust me: you won't. Memories fade faster than we want them to. Plus, the babies in those photos will grow up and have no memories of the events at all--make sure you can pass on your photos WITH VALUE.
- We'll add details (value!) to our photos in print pages later, but for now, you can quickly add them to your digital files in your Forever account. You can Tag your photos (like put a tag called Bob on all the photos with Bob in them), and you can add Descriptions (names, dates, places, details). Start this video at 6:45 to see how. It's super easy! Again, this can be done straight from your phone if you want.
- This is what it looks like in your Forever Storage. You can see the Description I added at the right (it's kind of a paragraph) and the Tags in blue at the bottom right.
TO CHOOSE A PAGE IN A PHOTO-MEMORY BOOK (Wednesday)
- Whether you're a "scrapbooker" or not has nothing to do with this, so don't worry!
- Putting photos and memories in pages is so important! Experts always say that no matter how you save your photos digitally, print remains one of the safest places to store photos. Plus, you can easily add all the memories and details when they're on a page, and you don't need an expensive device like a phone or computer to be able to access your precious photos! A book makes a great gift and really isn't the same as an email with pictures.
- Books from Forever are printed at the highest quality in the industry, so they last, plus a PDF of your book is automatically saved in your Forever Storage, so you have a digital version of it, too. (So easy to share!) Find a book template you like here (I suggest searching either "yearbook" or "classic"). Click "start my book" and then you'll choose a page or two that you'll put photos and memories (journaling) in tomorrow. This video gives you a quick rundown of how to change page layouts. So, if--for example--you have 9 photos this week that you'll be saving in pages tomorrow, look for a page or two that will hold 9 photos.
TO PUT PHOTOS IN PAGES (Thursday)
- Put photos in the template's photo place holders, as you saw in the video above. Adjust them within the photo space as needed. Feel free to choose a different page layout if it turns out the one you'd chosen before doesn't fit the pictures how you like.
- NOTE: Using a Design & Print template is the quickest and easiest way to preserve your memories in pages, but if digital scrapbooking with full creativity and flexibility on pages is more your thing, use Artisan instead. It's what I use, and I *love* it! Learn more about Artisan here to start, and find my whole Artisan Quick Tips with Jennifer series here.
TO ADD DETAILS IN PAGES (Friday)
- Click the text boxes on the pages you've just put photos in so you can add details. This is sometimes called journaling or story. Your memories are what make the photos worth something. Refer to the Yearbook Template video above if you need a refresher.
TO CATCH UP (Saturday)
- If you got behind on any part for any reason this week, catch up today! If you're right on track, use this time to work on photos and memories from previous weeks, months, or years.
- If 10 minutes isn't enough to catch up as much as you'd like, set aside some time on your calendar, or join our quarterly Photo Rodeo: Rein in Your Photos for some dedicated work time online (and I'm there for questions if you have any).
- Some weeks, you'll take more pictures than other weeks. On an average week, I take 0-5 photos. However, I spent 6 days in Ireland last spring and took about 50 photos a day! It was pretty easy to cull photos each night at the hotel, especially with the app, but that's really all I had time for then. So, I set aside time on my calendar (before I left!) to come home and do these other steps. Use this "catch up" time for whatever suits you best, and add more time as needed for non-average weeks.
Now you're ready! You can start a photo-preserving and memory keeping habit on Sunday! Keep in up in just 10 minutes a day.
I suggest getting everything ready to go for Sunday NOW by doing those things that require some set-up under the "Using FOREVER..." section. You can peruse some savings information here so you're ready for Sunday, too. It'll be a great day!
Keep up The 10 Minutes Daily Photo Plan for 6 weeks, and tell me what you think! What changed for you? What did you discover? How do you feel after 6 weeks with your photos and memories? Tell me in the comments below, or email photoandstorytreasures@gmail.com
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