Paper clutter is the number one problem in messy home offices, and it can be overwhelming and daunting to tackle. But once you have a handle on it, maintaining paper clutter is an easy task. Take control of important papers by implementing a daily systematic process. As soon as paper enter into your home follow the recommended actions:
Immediately recycle or shredded any junk mail. Don't give it a chance to accumulate. It is called junk mail for a reason.
Decide if you need to pay the bill right away, if not place it in a bill organizer.
If you anticipating on having a paper keepsake worthy, place in a memorabilia decorative box.
School papers can take over your home in an instant.
Prevent this from happening by setting aside five minutes each afternoon as soon as the kids get in from school, go through each of their backpacks. Respond to items that need your attention, recycle any trash and have your children get started on their homework.
Newspaper, place in a designated recycling bin. If you don't have time to read it, recycle it _ it's old news. Once a new magazine arrives in mail toss the last edition.
Anything that needs your attention or response (such as wedding or birthday invitations) should go into an “Action” folder. Once or twice a week, go through the folder and make a decision rather to keep or discard.
Important papers that need to be filed should go into a “To File” folder but only if you don’t have time to file them right away. Once a week, go through and file everything in this folder in its proper place.