How to handle paper

Paper can be the most pervasive thing we encounter on a daily basis. You deal with it at work and then get attacked by paper when you come home. It is easy to become overwhelmed and not do anything. But as we all know this leads to piles and further sensations of having no control. Eventually everything just sits there and then important information starts to get misplaced.

To avoid this scenario, sort papers over a shredder and recycling bin. Right out of the gate you can get rid of any junk or obsolete information in the recycling, or shred documents with important information. By doing it at that moment you prevent build up of big piles that are harder to go through later on.

Have a home for everything. All paper should get trashed, go in a folder or basket for temporary holding or go on a memo board for easy access. If you have an upcoming event and get a postcard for it, record the event in your calendar and then place the postcard with directions in an “events” folder or tack it to a memo board. If you get a document at work pertaining to a specific project put it right with the related papers, either in a binder clip or folder and set it aside until you are ready to work on it.

As soon as you receive relevant paper distribute it to its proper home and watch the piles slowly go away!