|
 | |  | |  | |  | |  | |  | |  | |  |
|
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Get Organized Now! |
In my years of organizing, I’ve noticed that the home office gives people a lot of trouble – more,
perhaps, than any other room in the home. Paperwork, odds and ends, and general clutter can make it
hard to find what you need when you need it, and seriously decrease your productivity. It can even
cost you money, especially if you’re losing bills and bank statements in a knee-deep pile of papers.
Before the stress sets in (or even if it already has), why not Clean Up and Green Up? Here's how to
turn that cluttered desk into a streamlined workspace, and bring a little more green into your home
office while you’re at it.
together (including the contents of drawers and unorganized files), and find a comfortable space of
table or floor. It’s best to get everything sorted at once, but if you don’t have time for that, you can
tackle a little at a time. Just make sure to stick to the system you’ve established.
perhaps, than any other room in the home. Paperwork, odds and ends, and general clutter can make it
hard to find what you need when you need it, and seriously decrease your productivity. It can even
cost you money, especially if you’re losing bills and bank statements in a knee-deep pile of papers.
Before the stress sets in (or even if it already has), why not Clean Up and Green Up? Here's how to
turn that cluttered desk into a streamlined workspace, and bring a little more green into your home
office while you’re at it.
- Get Started: Determine what you’re working with. The more thorough your plan, the easier the
actual process of organization will be. So ask yourself these questions.
- Do you have an actual office in your home, or is your ‘office’ the corner of your kitchen table
where you pay your bills? Do you need to be space-efficient? Kid-proof? - How much storage space do you have? Where is it located? Location in the home will
impact how you organize your paperwork. - Are you hanging on too long? IRS tax laws have changed: now, you only need to keep
your personal tax receipts and information for three years after the date of filing, not
seven. The same goes for businesses – although my accountant advises me to keep files
for four years, just in case.
- Develop your system. When you know where you’re going with an organizing project, getting
there is easy.
- Do you organize naturally by subject or date? Alphabetically by category or by company?
Decide how you plan to organize your paperwork and files before you start sorting. Don’t
choose a system that’s uncomfortable for you: items should be placed where you’d
naturally look for them. - Will you be sorting your mail and paperwork daily? Weekly? Monthly? If it’s the latter, make
sure you carve out adequate time in your schedule to keep your office on track, and find a
catch-all to store papers neatly until you can file them. - Gather what you need: Files folders, whether legal or letter-sized, are a must. Label them
clearly according to your system. If you’re using a filing cabinet, you’ll also need hanging
files.
- Green Tip: Look for file folders made from recycled materials.
- What are your preferred storage methods? Accordion folders, file boxes, file cabinets, and
even plastic storage bins are great options for organizing paperwork. Before you start
organizing, have your storage receptacles ready to go.
- Green Tip: Boxes from electronic equipment, small appliances, and other household
goods can be recycled as file storage – just be sure to label them clearly. If choosing
plastic bins, look for non-PVC plastics. Re-label and re-use older accordion folders.
together (including the contents of drawers and unorganized files), and find a comfortable space of
table or floor. It’s best to get everything sorted at once, but if you don’t have time for that, you can
tackle a little at a time. Just make sure to stick to the system you’ve established.
- Ready, Set, Sort!
- Sort into big piles, then smaller ones. I like to create six general stacks: credit card
statements, auto expenses, home expenses, utilities, tax-related materials, and purchases
receipts. That way, if I’m forced to stop in the middle of sorting, I don’t lose my place. If
youre dealing with multiple years of paperwork, separate by year first to avoid confusion. - Once you have your big piles, go through them one at a time and organize by company,
expense type or date, depending on your system.
- Now, you're ready to file:
- Don’t overstuff your files. You want it to be easy to find what you need when you need it.
If you’re feeling ambitious, you could color-code your files – but for most people clear
labeling works fine. - Keep only what you need. If your bank or credit card company will provide online
statements for months and years passed, you probably don’t need to save your
statements past the one year mark, unless you’re fighting a discrepancy. Ditto for utility
bills, car payment stubs, and insurance bills (although you should always keep your
policies). Always shred these types of documents to minimize the risk of identity fraud.
- Green Tip: Recycle your shredded paper! Most curbside pickup services will take it
provided it's in a paper - not plastic - bag, or a cardboard box.
- Tax returns (the actual Forms 1040, etc., not the accompanying receipts) should be kept
indefinitely. - Receipts for large purchases like household appliances, electronics, jewelry, and anything
with a warrantee should be saved for as long as you own the item – especially if you plan
to resell. Also good to save: receipts for household repairs (materials and services), auto
repairs and upgrades, and medical expenses. I like to store receipts in clearly labeled
8x10 envelopes: this keeps small pieces of paper from getting misplaced. - Receipts for groceries, clothes and shoes you’ve already worn, take-out meals, or coffee
can be recycled or shredded. - Receipts for tax-deductible or business expenses should be kept separate from the rest in
their own envelope, so they’re easy to tally at the end of the year.
- Storage Solutions
- If you have papers from more than one year, deal with the oldest first. Organize files in
your chosen receptacle. Even if you have a little extra room, you should only use one
box/accordion file/drawer per year. Make sure your boxes and files are clearly labeled. - When you get to the current year, make sure that your chosen storage is accessible;
you're going to be doing more filing before the year is up. Many people like to use the file
drawers in their desk for the current year, and store past years’ files in a closet or
cupboard. If you don’t have a desk, make sure to keep your current accordion file handy so
you don’t slouch on the filing. - Designate a catch-all for paperwork that needs to be filed. This can go on top of your desk,
in the kitchen, even by the front door – wherever you normally read and sort your mail. If
you do a lot of online bill-paying, the catch-all should be near your computer, so any
confirmation pages you print aren’t lost.
- Green Tip: Many people use plastic ‘inboxes’ as catch-alls, but metal and wood are
actually better: they’re more durable, and don’t require crude petroleum to
manufacture. Also, PVC plastics have been linked to all manner of health concerns –
including birth defects, cancer, and reproductive issues – and can’t be recycled.
- A second catch-all or basket for unpaid bills is also a good idea: when you’ve paid a bill,
simply transition the statement from one basket to the other.
- Odds and Ends. Now that your mountains of paperwork have been conquered, your office or
work area probably looks a hundred times neater and more orderly. But there might still be a few
little things floating around your desk that are contributing to clutter. Here are some ideas.
- Keep pencils pens, and highlighters/markers together. Cute vases from thrift stores, long
narrow baskets, or even oversized coffee mugs are great places to store your writing
implements.
- Green Tip: Invest in refillable pens. Not only do they look professional, they’re fun to
write with, and refills produce far less waste.
- Keep accessories like staplers, rulers, hole-punches, tape, and rubber bands in a basket
on your desktop, or assign them a place in a drawer. - Paperclips and binder clips scatter easily, so store them in small containers with lids
- Green Tip: Well-washed glass spice jars or baby food jars make great homes for
small items.
| Site design by Aphrodite, Inc. If you have questions or comments about this web site, please contact bryna@yourlifeorganized.com |
| Streamline Your Home Office |
