10 Paper Taming Strategies
by Maria Gracia
Notes, cards, magazine clippings, recipes, coupons, letters,
mail, receipts, statements, sticky notes, newspapers, school papers,
newsletters, warranties, instruction manuals--is it any wonder that most people
feel as if they're drowning in all their paper?
Here are 10 simple tips to keep your paper under control and
to help you maintain your sanity.
1. DO A DAILY ATTACK.
Rather than allowing papers to pile up for days, attack them as you receive
them. This will ensure the piles never get overwhelming. Five minutes
spent sorting through papers each day, will save hours later.
2. CURTAIL THE MAIL.
Handle mail every single day. Open it over the recycle bin, and
immediately get rid of anything you don't need. Then, sort through the rest of
your mail, being sure to put:
-- bills into a bill paying system
-- papers that need to be referenced into a filing system
-- papers that need to be read in a To Read basket/folder
-- papers that should be distributed to other family members in folders or trays
designated for each person.
3. FREE UP YOUR FILING SYSTEM.
When was the last time you weeded out your filing system? If it has been
awhile, you can probably reduce its contents by 50 percent or more. Set aside a
few hours over the next week, and go through each folder one by one. Recycle
anything that is outdated (e.g. an advertising flyer for an item that was on
sale in 1972, a warranty for a toaster you tossed 3 years ago, and so on), or
anything that no longer interests you (e.g. a recipe you no longer intend on
making, an article you meant to read that no longer applies to your life, etc.).
4. MANAGE THE MEMORIES.
I know. I know. I've heard it all before. You just can't
bring yourself to toss your sentimental papers--old love
letters, kids artwork, a card from a dear friend, vacation
post cards, programs from every family member's graduation, wedding invitations
from weddings you attended years ago.
And guess what? I don't recommend you toss all of these
things. Just like lots of people, I'm quite sentimental myself. However, I do
recommend that you put a limit on your sentimentality. I limit mine to 2 small
boxes. Once the boxes are full, I discard the papers that have the
least sentimental significance. This way, the only papers inside are those
dearest to my heart.
5. NIX NEWSPAPERS.
First, if you're getting a regular subscription each day, week or month, be
sure you actually have time to read it before the next issue comes. If you
simply don't have time, save your money and reduce the paper build-up by canceling
your subscription. You can always get your news, tips, recipes, etc. on TV, the
radio or the Internet. If you do enjoying reading your subscription, set aside
time to read it each day or week, and recycle that issue before the next issue
arrives. This way, your newspapers won't turn into paper piles.
6. CLIP THE PAGE, TOSS THE REST.
When you read a magazine, you're bound to find an article or recipe you wish
to reference later. When this happens, whatever you do, don't keep the entire
magazine for those one or two pages that interest you. Instead, clip the
recipe or article you wish to keep and file it in your filing system, under
Pending Recipes, or Pending Home Projects, or Pending Business Ideas, etc. This
way, you'll know where to find them, but you won't be hoarding piles of
magazines.
7. TURN OFF YOUR PRINTER.
Once computers came to be popular among the masses, there was talk of a
paperless society. Last time I checked--and this number has probably increased
in the past few years--there were more than 600,000,000 pages printed from
computers every day! While it is occasionally necessary to print something you
get on your computer, 99% of the e-mails and computer documents we receive on a
daily basis do not need to be printed. Instead, delete anything you don't need,
and store any electronic documents you do need to keep on your computer hard
drive or computer disks.
8. CONSOLIDATE YOUR LISTS AND INFORMATION.
If you keep your To Do lists, schedules, calendars, instruction checklists,
notes, and other lists and information on paper, then be sure you're using a
system that will consolidate all of this information into one
binder, or an active filing system. Loose papers can easily get misplaced.
Papers in an efficient system will get used and will be easily accessed
when needed.
9. CURB COUPONS.
First, if you never use coupons, stop clipping them. This may sound obvious,
but I know lots of people who clip 'em, sort 'em, store 'em--but never use
'em. If you do use coupons, don't toss them all in a shoebox. Instead, use a
coupon sorter, which you can pick up at most grocery stores. When you're
clipping, be careful of coupon duplicates and triplicates. Most of the time, the
expiration dates run out before you have a chance to use them.
10. BECOME DOCUMENT SAVVY.
Sometimes it's difficult to decide what to keep and what to toss,
especially when it comes to bank and credit card
statements, tax returns, cancelled checks, ATM
transactions, receipts and so on. Every person has his or her own
individual financial situation, so it's always advisable that you speak with
your accountant or financial adviser to determine how long you should keep
certain papers. However, the average person who is not in danger of being
audited, can generally:
--toss paid bills for non tax-deductible items and
utilities after 1 year (only keep if you purchased a big-ticket item).
--get rid of day to day receipts for credit card purchases and ATM receipts once
the monthly statements have arrived.
--recycle monthly stock or other financial statements once the annual statements
have arrived. (However, if you're going to be applying for a mortgage or a loan
in the near future, it's a good idea to have at least 6 monthly statements on
hand.)
--ditch cash receipts for small-ticket items, like groceries, video
rentals, shoes or outfits you don't plan on returning, restaurants (as long as
you don't need to claim these for business purposes.)
By the way, lately, there have been more and more reports of people having their
identity stolen, from thieves who have found old credit card receipts, bank
statements and personal documents in the trash. It is highly recommended
that you buy yourself a shredder--very inexpensive and you can get one at
Target, or an office supply store--and shred all documents that contain any
personal information before you toss them.
Copyright 2002 by Maria Gracia
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