Why Tabjay Doesn’t Have Labels

For some, applying labels to organize information is a necessary and worthwhile chore. For others, it's a nightmare to be avoided.

Regardless, if you’re creating a library, you need labels. Why?

In a folder-based world, at least in theory, every piece of information tucks neatly into the right place in the hierarchy. In reality, this isn’t the case. So labels attempt to cut across hierarchies to support different perspectives to help you find what you need.

Unfortunately, labels have several shortcomings.

First, it takes a lot of time, effort, and skill to devise an effective set of labels. There’s even a whole body of science behind labels (taxonomies). In large organizations, there are often people whose jobs are solely dedicated to this.

Second, consistency is crucial for success. Labels must be applied in a consistent manner, and labels must be applied to every resource. This is a never-ending task.

Third, sharing a system of labels is difficult. Once created, everyone else must learn its structure and understand its meaning. And like any system for organizing, labels will naturally reflect the organizer’s perspective. But different people have different backgrounds, so what makes sense to me might not make sense to you.

Finally, change can be costly. Adapting and evolving a label system requires the relabeling of everything, and then retraining everyone involved.

Fortunately, Tabjay’s task-centric approach delivers the information you need without the hassle of labels. So you can stop thinking about labels. And once you do, you’ll be free to focus on getting things done.