"hot" file folders to handle timely paperwork. This could be bills to pay, paperwork to read and sign, birthday or holiday card lists to handle, etc. Put these folders in the vertical file you purchased for your desktop.

All other paperwork should go in one of your other three accessory purchases: The file cabinet (or the binders), the paper shredder or the trash can.

The file cabinet is for paperwork you're keeping long-term but that's not in active usage.

The paper shredder is for any paper you can discard that contains personal details or financial information, such as credit card offers and banking paperwork.

The trash can is for any paperwork that y

If one of your biggest home organization challenges is how to organize paper, maintain incoming paper and just control paper clutter in general, you're not alone. Paper enters almost every household daily. If you don't have a system to organize paper and deal with incoming paperwork then sooner than later you end up with paper piles everywhere. Tackle paper clutter before it overwhelms you any further (and even if it already has it's not too late).

Papers in your home might include:

bills and statements
mail
policies (e.g. insurance)
holiday cards
magazines (from subscriptions)
items you printed while browsing the Web
clippings from newspapers or magazines such as recipes, tips, products of interest
children's report cards, artwork, permission slips, medical records and more
shopping receipts
shopping lists

So what to do with it all?

FIRST designate an ongoing workspace for handling ALL paper matters. But don't use the kitchen table. You want a more permanent work station to manage incoming and existing paper, not one you have to hastily clear for dinner.

SECOND, get the right tools for this work space. That includes:

--work surface (e.g. desk or folding table)

--comfortable chair (If you're on a budget, you could always roll in a dining room chair or kitchen stool when needed.)

--file cabinet for storing "permanent" paperwork (which you'll try to limit.). A two-drawer vertical file cabinet is sufficient for the average household that doesn't have any additional hobbies or home business paperwork.

-- paper shredder. Crosscut or diamond cut paper shredders are more secure than strip cut shredders.

--waste basket

--simple desktop organizer to hold office supplies such as pens, pencils, tape, scissors, stapler, stamps, envelopes, return address stickers or stamp and perhaps a small pad of note paper.

--plastic stackable paper trays

--binders (loose leaf notebooks) along with some top loading sheet protectors, slash pocket folders and a three-hole puncher. Get two sturdy bookends to hold the binders in place on the back of your desk or table. Binders are an alternative to putting permanent items in your file cabinet. For instance, instead of filing paper statements you're keeping, store them in the binders by month or by category. They're easy to flip through when searching for items. But you can label sections in the binder too with notebook dividers with tabs.

--vertical sorter. This is something you can use to hold pending files or your tickler files on your desktop.

THIRD, set up SYSTEMS to manage and reduce your incoming paperwork. Set up the tickler file or make "hot" file folders to handle timely paperwork. This could be bills to pay, paperwork to read and sign, birthday or holiday card lists to handle, etc. Put these folders in the vertical file you purchased for your desktop.

All other paperwork should go in one of your other three accessory purchases: The file cabinet (or the binders), the paper shredder or the trash can.

The file cabinet is for paperwork you're keeping long-term but that's not in active usage.

The paper shredder is for any paper you can discard that contains personal details or financial information, such as credit card offers and banking paperwork.

The trash can is for any paperwork that yo

spapers or magazines such as recipes, tips, products of interest
children's report cards, artwork, permission slips, medical records and more
shopping receipts
shopping lists

So what to do with it all?

FIRST designate an ongoing workspace for handling ALL paper matters. But don't use the kitchen table. You want a more permanent work station to manage incoming and existing paper, not one you have to hastily clear for dinner.

SECOND, get the right tools for this work space. That includes:

--work surface (e.g. desk or folding table)

--comfortable chair (If you're on a budget, you could always roll in a dining room chair or kitchen stool when needed.)

--file cabinet for storing "permanent" paperwork (which you'll try to limit.). A two-drawer vertical file cabinet is sufficient for the average household that doesn't have any additional hobbies or home business paperwork.

-- paper shredder. Crosscut or diamond cut paper shredders are more secure than strip cut shredders.

--waste basket

--simple desktop organizer to hold office supplies such as pens, pencils, tape, scissors, stapler, stamps, envelopes, return address stickers or stamp and perhaps a small pad of note paper.

--plastic stackable paper trays

--binders (loose leaf notebooks) along with some top loading sheet protectors, slash pocket folders and a three-hole puncher. Get two sturdy bookends to hold the binders in place on the back of your desk or table. Binders are an alternative to putting permanent items in your file cabinet. For instance, instead of filing paper statements you're keeping, store them in the binders by month or by category. They're easy to flip through when searching for items. But you can label sections in the binder too with notebook dividers with tabs.

--vertical sorter. This is something you can use to hold pending files or your tickler files on your desktop.

THIRD, set up SYSTEMS to manage and reduce your incoming paperwork. Set up the tickler file or make "hot" file folders to handle timely paperwork. This could be bills to pay, paperwork to read and sign, birthday or holiday card lists to handle, etc. Put these folders in the vertical file you purchased for your desktop.

All other paperwork should go in one of your other three accessory purchases: The file cabinet (or the binders), the paper shredder or the trash can.

The file cabinet is for paperwork you're keeping long-term but that's not in active usage.

The paper shredder is for any paper you can discard that contains personal details or financial information, such as credit card offers and banking paperwork.

The trash can is for any paperwork that y

when needed.)

--file cabinet for storing "permanent" paperwork (which you'll try to limit.). A two-drawer vertical file cabinet is sufficient for the average household that doesn't have any additional hobbies or home business paperwork.

-- paper shredder. Crosscut or diamond cut paper shredders are more secure than strip cut shredders.

--waste basket

--simple desktop organizer to hold office supplies such as pens, pencils, tape, scissors, stapler, stamps, envelopes, return address stickers or stamp and perhaps a small pad of note paper.

--plastic stackable paper trays

--binders (loose leaf notebooks) along with some top loading sheet protectors, slash pocket folders and a three-hole puncher. Get two sturdy bookends to hold the binders in place on the back of your desk or table. Binders are an alternative to putting permanent items in your file cabinet. For instance, instead of filing paper statements you're keeping, store them in the binders by month or by category. They're easy to flip through when searching for items. But you can label sections in the binder too with notebook dividers with tabs.

--vertical sorter. This is something you can use to hold pending files or your tickler files on your desktop.

THIRD, set up SYSTEMS to manage and reduce your incoming paperwork. Set up the tickler file or make "hot" file folders to handle timely paperwork. This could be bills to pay, paperwork to read and sign, birthday or holiday card lists to handle, etc. Put these folders in the vertical file you purchased for your desktop.

All other paperwork should go in one of your other three accessory purchases: The file cabinet (or the binders), the paper shredder or the trash can.

The file cabinet is for paperwork you're keeping long-term but that's not in active usage.

The paper shredder is for any paper you can discard that contains personal details or financial information, such as credit card offers and banking paperwork.

The trash can is for any paperwork that y

rs, slash pocket folders and a three-hole puncher. Get two sturdy bookends to hold the binders in place on the back of your desk or table. Binders are an alternative to putting permanent items in your file cabinet. For instance, instead of filing paper statements you're keeping, store them in the binders by month or by category. They're easy to flip through when searching for items. But you can label sections in the binder too with notebook dividers with tabs.

--vertical sorter. This is something you can use to hold pending files or your tickler files on your desktop.

THIRD, set up SYSTEMS to manage and reduce your incoming paperwork. Set up the tickler file or make "hot" file folders to handle timely paperwork. This could be bills to pay, paperwork to read and sign, birthday or holiday card lists to handle, etc. Put these folders in the vertical file you purchased for your desktop.

All other paperwork should go in one of your other three accessory purchases: The file cabinet (or the binders), the paper shredder or the trash can.

The file cabinet is for paperwork you're keeping long-term but that's not in active usage.

The paper shredder is for any paper you can discard that contains personal details or financial information, such as credit card offers and banking paperwork.

The trash can is for any paperwork that y

"hot" file folders to handle timely paperwork. This could be bills to pay, paperwork to read and sign, birthday or holiday card lists to handle, etc. Put these folders in the vertical file you purchased for your desktop.

All other paperwork should go in one of your other three accessory purchases: The file cabinet (or the binders), the paper shredder or the trash can.

The file cabinet is for paperwork you're keeping long-term but that's not in active usage.

The paper shredder is for any paper you can discard that contains personal details or financial information, such as credit card offers and banking paperwork.

The trash can is for any paperwork that you do not need that you would not mind reading about on the front page of your newspaper if a "dumpster diver" retrieved it.

If you can sort paper into these three areas as it arrives in your home, great. But if you cannot get into that habit, put incoming paperwork into one of the desktop baskets or plastic paper trays. Then set a time weekly (perhaps even twice a week depending on how quickly paper enters your home) to sort and handle these papers.

If you're already behind with organizing your papers, start with the newest paper. This helps ensure you don't overlook something timely, such as paying the electric bill next week. Then you can organize papers from those other piles scattered throughout your home.