Hi there! I'm Lisa Lisson, and I'm passionate about helping people like you discover their ancestors and expand their family tree without feeling overwhelmed or uncertain about the next steps.
What's actually on your genealogy desk in 2026?
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Hi, Reader, Ten years ago, I was a "paper based" researcher. Yes, I was moving toward a completely digital system, but I still had a lot of paper. Plus, I had nn elaborate filing system that needed its own management system. Most of the paper is gone now. Good riddance. What's left on my desk is a small collection of tools that actually earn their place, and one upgrade I wish I'd made years earlier. That upgrade? A second monitor. Genealogy is essentially a constant comparison exercise. Records against notes. Documents side by side. Source next to tree. A second monitor means I do all of that without toggling back and forth like a tennis spectator. Once you work this way, single-screen research feels sluggish. In this week's new post, I'm sharing everything that's on my desk right now — and what's not. Including:
There's also a short, free toolkit list linked in the post if you want the quick version. 👉 My Minimalist Genealogy Office: The Tools I Actually Use (2026) You don't need a lot of office supplies to do strong genealogy research. You need a clear head and good evidence. Happy Ancestor Hunting! Lisa P.S. What is your go-to research tool? |
Are You My Cousin? Newsletter
Hi there! I'm Lisa Lisson, and I'm passionate about helping people like you discover their ancestors and expand their family tree without feeling overwhelmed or uncertain about the next steps.
Hi, Reader, Most genealogists think organization happens at the desk. I used to think that too. But some of my most-used research tools aren't on my computer. They're on my phone — and I reach for them constantly. At the courthouse. In the cemetery. On the couch with a stack of documents. The small moments add up faster than you'd think. This week I updated one of my most practical posts. This one has been sitting in the archives for a while, but the way I actually research today looks a lot...
Hi, Reader, Most genealogists eventually end up with more than one subscription. Sometimes it is by accident, and sometimes it is out of frustration. The question is whether it's actually helping your research or just adding to your monthly expenses. Ancestry and MyHeritage both have billions of records. But the difference isn't the number — it's the collections and how they're indexed. I use them differently depending on what I'm trying to solve, and there are specific situations where...
Hi, Reader, There’s a genealogy skill that I don’t see talked about very often. It’s not finding records or learning about new databases. It’s not even about organizing your files. It’s observation. It's stepping back from your research to look at it through a different lens. The past couple of months, I’ve been revisiting one of my own brick wall ancestors - King Elliott. (That really is his name!) I've not made progress on this line for years until now. I expect you have a family line or...