How to Organize Paper Clutter

Part of this post on how to organize paper clutter refers to the book “The Home Decluttering Diet”, which I received free for review. You can view my full disclosure policy here.

Got paper clutter? Yea. Me too. Only I have come up to an easy system to organize paper clutter and keep it under control.

 

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Jenn, from the blog Clean & Scentsible, came out with a book called The Home Decluttering Diet. I was lucky to receive my copy, and I cannot tell you how excited I am to start decluttering my home. Just as many weight-loss diets begin with a 30 day detox, so does this “decluttering diet”. Each day, for 30 days, you tackle one area of your home for 15 minutes. After the 30 day detox, the book takes you through each room of your home so you can really hone in on decluttering every space.

 

Guess what we’re decluttering on Day 1? Yep. Paperwork… Now, I’m not saying that I never have piles of paper sitting on my counters. I do. But I also have a system to keep those piles from completely taking over my house.

My System to Organize Paper Clutter

The Inbox

Enter (what I like to call) the inbox.

 

This paper tray houses all my piles of papers until I have a chance to deal with them; which I try to do once a week. Instead of mail, school flyers, magazines, and coupons scattered about, they all get put in one spot; keeping my surfaces “paper-free”.

You want to make sure your inbox is durable. I started out with a fabric-covered cardboard bin, and it quickly tore due to so much use.

Sort Paperwork Into Categories

When I have a chance to sort through my “inbox”, I place the paperwork into 4 separate categories:

 

Trash

Pretty self-explanatory, right? Flyers from companies you’re not interested in, junk mail, kids’ math tests (unless it’s a winner and deserves a spot on the fridge 🙂 )

The next 3 categories are divided using file folders.

Things to Deal with Now

 … or within the next 48 hours. If my children come home with a permission slip for a school field trip, I probably need to sign it and return it to school rather quickly, so I file this in my “To Do Now” folder. Other items for this folder might include bills, coupons, etc.

Things to Deal With Soon

…within the next week or two. If my child comes home with a flyer to join the baseball team, but sign-ups don’t start for another couple weeks, I put that flyer in my “Soon” folder. While there’s no hurry to address these items, there is a deadline. Make sure to check this folder regularly so items aren’t missed.

Things to Deal With When There’s Time

I get magazines and catalogs that I really want to look through, but I don’t always have time. These get put into my “When There’s Time” folder. There is no rush on the items in this folder. They could sit around for a year, and I wouldn’t be missing a deadline. It’s sort of an “at your leisure folder”.

 

To keep these folders all together, I purchased a hanging wall file (similar) to house my three categories.  I found mine at Homegoods, but there are lots of options out there.

The trick is to keep up with the system.

• At least once a week, go through your inbox.
• File paperwork according to urgency.
• Remember to look through your “Now” and “Soon” folders regularly so you don’t forget to deal with the paperwork that’s in there. Things in your “Soon” folder quickly become items you need to deal with “Now”. If it’s helpful, keep your “Now” folder in a more obvious spot (perhaps next to your computer), so you remember to deal with those items over the next couple days.

Ready to declutter your house? You can find The Home Decluttering Diet on Amazon.

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