How I organize a dozen coding projects (without losing my mind)

I have a problem.

22 coding and content projects are scattered across my Mac.

They were in different repos, stages, and purposes.

Last week, I spent 30 minutes trying to find which project contained my options-trading code.

Here's the system I built to fix this:

The Two-System Rule:

Zettelkasten = Thinking and learning

• Permanent notes about what I learned

• Frameworks and insights

• NO project files or PRDs

~/cursor/ = Building and shipping

• One folder per project

• All code, docs, and deployment info

• Each project has a CLAUDE.md file for AI context

The Active Projects Limit:

I currently focus on a max of 3 projects in "Currently Building" status.

I can't start a new project until one moves to "Shipped" or "Abandoned".

The Project Index:

I created one master file listing all 24 projects with:

• Status (Active, Shipped, Archived)

• GitHub links

• Last updated date

• Next actions

The Claude Code Integration:

Each project folder has a CLAUDE.md file that tells Claude Code:

• What this project does

• Current status and roadblocks

• Coding standards for this project

• Don't suggest features that belong in other projects

This means that when I'm coding, Claude immediately understands the project context. I still need to go in and edit the results.

The Weekly Review:

Every Friday at 5pm, I do the following:

• Review active projects

• Move completed ones to "Shipped"

• Archive dead projects

• Pick the next 3 from backlog

The Result:

I shipped a content ideation system, deployed a trading dashboard, and cleaned up 5 abandoned projects in the last week.

I also avoided a few "where did I put that code?" and "Where are my notes?" moments.

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