Paper Clutter

by Michele
(Iowa)

One of my biggest problems is paper clutter. What do I do with all the receipts, bank/investment statements, medical explanation of benefits/bills, children's papers, dance, scouts, piano, etc.! I feel overwhelmed with papers!

I work full time and have kids that are active in several things. I don't have time to go through things every day. Paper piles seem to pile up so quickly! HELP!

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Paper Clutter

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Sep 02, 2008
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There is a way!
by: Dan Englander

Shoeboxed.com is a good way to get all of those statements organized. We provide pre-paid envelopes, you send in your bills, receipts and statements, and we scan them in for you to access online.

You'll have all your statements in one place, and you won't have to do any of the work yourself.

Start here: Shoeboxed.com

Sep 23, 2008
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Putting an End to Paper Clutter
by: Tracy

Paper clutter is a big problem for many people. If you are surrounded by piles of paper that seem to be taking over your home, there are two steps to the perfect solution.

First, deal with the papers you already have and then create a system to deal with new papers as they come in.

You are going to have to set aside some time to sort through the papers you already have accumulated. You don't have to do this all at once. You can do it little bits at a time if that works better for you. Just keep working on it until you have sorted through everything.

Get yourself a file box or a filing cabinet, hanging files or file folders, and labels or a marker to write on the file folders.

Create a folder for each category of papers that are so important you have to keep them...insurance policies, tax documentation, mortgage documents, bank statement, etc. As you are sorting through your documents, place these types of papers in their appropriate files.

For receipts....if it is a major purchase, create a folder for receipts and keep them there. If you save every receipt for every purchase you make try to be a little more choosy about which receipts you save.

Unless you can claim a medical deduction on your taxes or a member of your family is dealing with a serious medical condition, there is no need to save every single Explanation of Benefits or bill that you receive. If you feel more comfortable saving them, create a folder for them and purge the folder once per year.

Children can bring a lot of paperwork into your home. Create a basket for each child. Place the baskets some place easily accessible yet slightly out of the way. Do a quick scan of the papers your kids bring home each day to see if something needs to be dealt with immediately. Put the rest of the papers in their baskets. On Saturday morning, or whatever time works best for you, sort through the baskets. Throw away the trash, create a home for papers you want to save (I use a small, square, plastic storage tote with a lid on the floor of my son's closet) and place them in their home, add important dates to your calendar, etc. The baskets should be empty when you are finished and ready for the week of papers.

Another big problem is your daily mail. Get in the habit of looking through your mail quickly as you bring it into the house. Do not even let the junk mail hit your kitchen counter...dispose of it immediately. Create a mail basket for the rest. Sort through your mail basket at least once per week.

It may seem overwhelming at first. If you are used to saving everything you may find it hard to part with papers that "might be important some day." The more you purge the more you will like how it feels to be clutter-free and organized and it will get much easier to purge that paper clutter!

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