Get Rid of Paper Clutter Forever

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Being smothered with paper at every eye level? Do you know that clutter kills our happiness? It does in different ways. It affects us visually and mentally. And it affects us emotionally too. But yet, if it’s such a burden in so many homes to maintain, why do we allow it?

 

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I Understand

 

I get it. Like I said in the beginning, I’m surrounded by paper clutter at the moment. I’m sitting at my kitchen table which has papers on it from work. On my kitchen counters there’s more of my work papers and another small pile of papers. On a kitchen cart at the corner of my kitchen, I can see more papers. And lastly, my dining room table. Yup, you guessed it, more papers. As you can see, I do get it.

 

But I also know how it makes me feel. I know I love clean countertops and I’d love it if my dining room table could be used right now if needed. But it’s not. We don’t always get it right and that’s okay. But I also know you want a better way to keep your paper clutter manageable. Otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this, right?

 

So I’m going to give it to you straight. Paper is an every day thing. We can’t whip our fingers now and have the most magical paper organization system without ever doing anything else. Oh how I wish that were true. But I do know steps which you can take to help manage the amount of paper that comes into your home. I also know of systems that will make it easier to keep the paper clutter organized. If only I could give you the motivation to keep it up (Lord knows I need it).

 

Now, let’s get started!

 

First Things First

 

1. Identify where all of the paper is coming from. Do you have mailings from companies trying to sell you something? Magazines that you never have the time or desire to read? Where is it all coming from. Once you know that, you can start to minimize what comes through your front door.
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2. Here’s how you’ll minimize the papers. Are there any mailing lists that you can unsubscribe from? Are there any mailings that you can go paperless with by only getting the online version? Is there anything you can cancel because you have no interest in continuing? This may take some time depending on how many papers are coming into your home but this is such an important step. Cut down on the amount of papers that comes though your front door.
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3. Next, can you take any pictures or scan anything into your computer to keep? I love using Trello to organize my life. I’ll take pictures of things my kids bring home from school. Papers I want to keep in case I have to reference them at a later time. And I add them to my Trello board that I labeled important papers. Keep this as an option for you as it will cut down on the amount of papers you need to store in your home.
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4. Throw out, recycle, or shred anything you don’t want immediately. Do this everyday as this will drastically cut down on your papers.
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5. Anything you decide to keep, you’ll need to figure out how and where to store them. Filing systems work best.

 

 

 

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Keep Ahead of it

 

Here’s how I keep my daily papers organized (most of the time). I bought a 3 tiered filing organizer and I keep that on my wall in my kitchen. In it, I have four file folders. These folders are: an action folder, file folder, shred folder and coupons folder. This way, when papers come into my home, I have an immediate system to organize them. If it’s a bill or some other type of important papers that need our attention, I’ll put those in my action folder. I go through this folder once a week to pay bills and address anything outstanding. If I get something that we need to keep but no action is needed, I put that in my file folder.

 

Using this system keeps me organized since I know right away where something goes. I like having a shred folder as we keep our shredder upstairs so I can just drop what I need into that folder and not worry about it until I’m ready to shred all of the papers at once. For the coupons folder, I keep circulars and any coupons we get in the mail. Then, when I have the chance each week, I’ll clip the coupons and this keeps them off my countertops until I’m ready to do something with them.

 

For kid’s papers, in the past I was keeping a folder for each of my kids to hold study materials and such but now that my kids are older they keep everything in their school binders. But you can certainly use the system that works best for you. I found the folders to be helpful in keeping their paper clutter organized. If they do bring anything home that needs my attention, I’ll add that to our action folder. And same with our file folder if needed.

 

When it comes to daily mail, to keep it organized you’ll need to handle it as soon as it comes in the door. I keep a basket in my living room for any magazines that come in and just go through it every month or so to recycle the old one. Remember to throw out or recycle any papers you don’t want right away. And file away everything else. But remember if you have a temporary filing system like I do, you’ll need to clean that out every 2 weeks to a month. Except for the action folder. Go through that folder every week so nothing gets missed.

 

 

 

Upstairs I have a filing crate and a shredder. About every month, I take care of the file and shred folders. I’ll file the papers that I’ve been collecting in my kitchen into my bigger filing crate that holds all of our files for us. .

 

Now, a word of caution: don’t keep a basket by the front door to collect mail. The problem is, it’s easy and convenient to throw mail in those after a long day at work but it isn’t helping you. Chances are, notices will be missed. Kid’s will miss out on field trips because the permission slip wasn’t turned in on time. Don’t let these things happen. Create a small filing system where it works best for you to keep your papers organized so nothing gets missed.

 

 

No One’s Perfect

 

This system works great for me. I don’t have to worry about filing my papers and shredding confidential information every day. This temporary filing organizer allows me to keep the daily mail and other papers organized until I can do something with them. Use a system that will work for you to keep your paper clutter under control. I know for me, I would let my papers collect on my kitchen counters if I didn’t have this temporary filing system.

 

You’ll have days when papers pile up and that’s okay. Don’t be hard on yourself. You are doing the best you can. But remember, the more you establish a routine with going through your papers every day, the easier it will get.

 

Now I’m off to organize my papers. See, no one can do it all. We’re all doing the best we can and that is good enough for me. I’m hoping you feel the same. Happy organizing!

 

Let me know what’s your biggest struggle when it comes to organizing papers.

 

 

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