After getting rid of most of our books in 2019, I want to do the same with our paperwork in 2020. I’ll start with the two file boxes in the living room and work my way up to the file storage area in the attic.
When mail and papers are stuffed into drawers or piled high on a desk, they can quickly take over and make it hard to work. We’re guessing that you don’t spend as much time and care on your bills and copies as you do on the rest of your house, which may be easier to keep clean. Even though it seems like a good idea to keep paperwork until you need it again, you shouldn’t wait another year to organize your paper piles. From the point of view of a professional organizer, here’s how to do it for good.
You’ve decided to get your paper stacks in order, but when you look at it all, the job seems too big. How will you go through all of those stacks?
These tips will work for you whether you have one small pile of papers on your counter or ten years’ worth of papers stored in stacks and boxes.
Make every effort to use less paper because it can be copied. If you know you’re not good at keeping track of small pieces of paper, remove them from your immediate area. Instead, use your phone, tablet, or computer to take digital notes.
If you’ve read some of my other posts, you may have noticed that I just cleaned up my house. I put it in groups, as Marie Kondo suggests. I have to say that I had to let go of a lot. But when I look back, I’m still surprised by how much paper has piled up. To be honest, it made so much paper that it could have been recycled in two bathtubs. Since then, I’ve changed the way I do paperwork in a big way. I keep important papers in a small box right now. I also keep current papers and notes in two separate files, one for business and one for personal use. That’s all.
Due to the coronavirus outbreak, I spent a lot of time at home cleaning up my things, especially my file cabinets. I had too many files! Because it was hard to do, I’m going to tell you how to get rid of your old papers and files in this post. This information will make the procedure much less painful.
Collect important papers like tax returns, medical records, insurance documents, and leases, and scan them into your computer to keep them safe. Recycle everything else, but keep any cards or pictures that are too important to you to throw away.
Should old schoolwork be thrown away?
Get rid of things you won’t need again. Don’t hold back. If the final exam or class is over, you don’t need to keep any class papers. If you’re tempted to keep a piece of writing because you “might use it for something else in the future,” DUMP IT.
When should I throw away my bank statements?
TIME TO KEEP: 3–7 YEARS Keeping this in mind, it’s a good idea to keep for three to seven years any document that backs up information on your tax return, such as Forms W-2 and 1099, bank and brokerage records, receipts for tuition payments and receipts for donations to charities.
Do you have to keep hard copies of your bills?
hold for a long time Keep all of your paperwork and contracts as long as you are still making loan payments (vehicle, house, student loan, everything). Once you’ve paid off the debt, the lender will send you a payoff statement. Keep this forever in case an old debt comes back to haunt you after the zombie apocalypse.
How do you plan to finish all your schoolwork?
Put the papers in the filing cabinet on wheels. After you’ve found your files, it’s time to put them somewhere safe. The hanging files should now be in the portable file box. Put the trash can in a place that is easy to get to, like the kitchen or the home office. Having a place for your papers to go is the best way to keep them in order.
Should you throw away credit card offers?
Can you tell me what I shouldn’t shred? The Federal Trade Commission says that you should keep pay stubs, medical bills, and bank statements for a year before throwing them away. Shred your credit card and utility bills after you’ve paid them. Keep all of your tax records on hand, just in case.
What is a good way to organize files?
The filing system should be easy to use and not too complicated. But the file system can’t lose its usefulness for the sake of being easy to use. 3. Accessibility: A good filing system should make it easy to find documents when they are needed.
What kind of file system is used the most?
The most common type of filing system is the alphabetical file. Each letter of the alphabet has its own alphabetically organized file guide. In a numerical file, the records are set up by number instead of by name.
How can you tell if a filing system really works?
Any file system must be able to answer yes to the question, “Can I find what I’m looking for when I need it?” All records must be easy to find, whether they are on a computer or in a filing cabinet. When records are lost, it leads to another loss.
How long will it take to lower your utility bills and save money?
Bills for utilities shouldn’t be kept for more than a year. Like tax bills and receipts, tax-related credit card bills should be kept for at least three years. When you get new policies for your home and car, shred the old ones.
Should I keep my old bank statements?
How long you should keep your bank and credit card statements depends on a lot of different things. Most of the time, you should keep them until you’ve filed your taxes for the year and dealt with any fraud issues, but in the long run, it may be better to keep them for longer.
Should I keep old mortgage statements?
You should keep your mortgage payment statements and any paperwork related to your refinance for at least three years. Some experts, on the other hand, may say that it should be kept for at least ten years.