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.β 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 β and what's not. Including:
There's also a short, free toolkit list linked in the post if you want the quick version. π My Minimalist Genealogy Office: The Tools I Actually Use (2026)β 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, As I shared last week, I lost access to a large chunk of my digital life. After a very stressful few week, I have good news! The Are You My Cousin? YouTube channel has been restored. π It still looks a bit barebones, and it will take me a bit of time to get it looking more organized. But, all of the videos are there. :) The loss to many of my digital assets was not permanent, and I did have backups in place. But this experience got my attention. It also made one thing very clear:...
Hi, Reader, A quick update on something you may have already noticed. My YouTube channel was recently hijacked. I'm working directly with Google and YouTube to get it restored β these things move slowly, but I'm on it. I'll let you know when it's back up. In the meantime, the website is running normally and everything there is fully accessible. Including the minimalist genealogy toolkit. A few of you had trouble reaching it recently β thank you for your patience while I got it sorted. Here's...
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 β 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...