A personal archive is not a warehouse for every digital object. It is a selection of material you may reasonably want to find again: finished work, important records, photographs, letters, and notes with lasting value.
Decide what belongs
Separate active material from archive material. Current projects need frequent access; archived items need dependable storage and clear labels. When a project ends, keep the final version, essential supporting files, and a short note explaining what it was. Remove temporary exports and duplicates that add no context.
Use plain, descriptive names. Dates in a consistent format help, especially for records and photographs. A simple structure based on broad areas of life is usually easier to maintain than a deep tree of categories.
Preserve context, not just files
A document without its background can become puzzling. Add a small index note for groups of material: where they came from, what period they cover, and why you kept them. Record the people or places in photographs while you still remember them.
For older file formats, consider whether you can still open the contents. Widely supported formats and readable exports reduce the chance that the archive becomes a box of inaccessible objects.
Make preservation routine
Keep more than one copy, with at least one copy in a different location, and test that you can restore a file. An untested backup is only an assumption.
Review the archive once or twice a year. You do not need to inspect everything. Check a sample, update your index, and remove material you knowingly no longer need. The archive should support memory, not demand constant curatorship.