Paper Cuts - Banish Paper!

I'm leaving today for an Organizing Business Trip to CA, for the next four days. Yes, that's right, no new blogs till next Thursday! Therefore, I am leaving you with a big task - BANISH PAPER! It will keep you so busy, you won't have time to go online - except to delete mail from your inbox!

Here are 9 fantastic tasks (with help from getorganizednow.com) to help you delete paper:

Paper Cuts: 9 Ways to More Effectively Handle Paper

While paper is a big part of our daily lives, that doesn't mean it has to take over or get out of hand. Here are 9 ways to more effectively handle paper.

1. Don't top it. Never put a large sheet of paper over a small sheet of paper. The small piece of paper will be hidden, and therefore difficult to find and/or easy to misplace.

2. Banish piles. It is extremely difficult to find a particular sheet of paper in a large pile. Avoid piling papers at all costs. Sort and file them into file folders, and put those folders in a filing cabinet or hanging file holder. (Ask me about my colorful filing system!)

3. Keep it together. While sticky notes are OK for quick temporary notes that you discard fairly soon after using them, they're not effective for notes you need to retain. If your environment is overrun with sticky notes, write your notes in a single spiral notebook instead. You'll still have to transfer these notes to your planner, PDA, address book, etc., but at least all of your notes will be in one single place where you can find them.

4. Open and dump. Open your mail right over your recycle container. Immediately discard outside envelopes, inserts you don't need and any other mail you're not interested in. Do this daily, and going through the mail will never be a chore again. TOUCH IT ONCE!
Place the rest in it's "Happy Home." Bills w/other monthly/bi-monthly bills in the desk organizer slot. To Do fliers/invites on your magnetic/cork board.

5. Use technology. Rather than using paper all the time, enter the technology age and use your computer whenever possible. I store my ideas, phone numbers, how-to notes and more right on my computer--no paper needed. Scan the rest, and then recycle it!

6. Don't get the measles. Every time you pick up a sheet of paper, draw a red dot in the bottom right corner. If your paper begins to look like it has the measles (tons of red dots) then you're spending too much time paper shuffling. Do the action on the paper, give the paper to whoever it belongs to, file it or get rid of it.
7. Save some trees. Don't forget that each sheet of paper has two sides. Many trees could be saved if you used the back of many letters or memos instead of using a brand new sheet all the time. Just a few perfect uses are grocery lists, kids' art paper or scrap paper to help you plan a party.

8. Shred it. Keep a small shredder attached to a small recycle container in your home office or business office. As you come across papers that contain personal information, you'll be able to shred them immediately. It's a lot quicker to shred necessary documents on an as-needed basis, then to save them all up for a major shredding session.

9. Eliminate a good amount of the paper you receive. Reduce the number of catalogs you are receiving by tearing off the name/address label and mailing it with a 'please remove me from your list' note to the catalog. To remove the amount of junk mail you receive, write to:

Mail Preference Service
DMAP.O. Box 9008
Farmingdale, NY 11735-9008

Include your name and address and a request to be removed from any list. And finally, stop the pre-approved credit card offers by calling Trans Union at 1-888-567-8688. They have options to remove your name for two years or permanently. They share data with Experian and Equifax, so you won't have to call them to make the same request.