Paper Management

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7 Simple Christmas Gifts Under $16

Monday, December 20th, 2010

Five days until Christmas and counting. Here are a few of my favorite practical gifts with small footprints, but big value – under $16 each.

ID Guard

1. ID Guard Stamp at Container Store for $10. Keep handy where you open mail to eliminate personal info on cc offers, junk mail. Stamps up to 1,000 times and can order refills.

2. Clear drawer organizers at Bed, Bath & Beyond. Perfect for containing slippery lingerie, socks, boxers. This 5 piece set of 3 small and 2 medium are priced right at $9.99. I gave this set to my daughter at her bridal shower. Somehow the organizers ended up in her husband’s drawers.

Car Jar

3. Yankee Candle Car Jar set. Give the smell of the beach, in 3 hanging fragrances for $6.00. If you can’t get to a Yankee Candle store or Hallmark, order online. Great gift for that driving teenager.

4. Post-It Pockets will hold the info that must be close at hand. For Mom on the side of the refrigerator, or a working woman to post on the wall next to her desk:. 3-pack at Staples – $12.99

Sticky pad

5. Handstands Jelly Sticky Pad holds sunglasses and cell phone secure on the dash of your car. Amazon – $4.99.

6. Michael Graves 6 shelf closet organizer is perfect for sweaters or purses. Hang the unit from your existing closet bar for extra clothing/accessory storage. Drawer inserts can be purchased separately.

Pepper spray

7. Sabre Jogger Pepper Spray with hand strap, partnered with a cell phone will complete safety precautions for a loved one.

Giving is the fun part. Have a wonderful holiday!

Posted in Featured, Holidays, Product Review | 3 Responses »
Tags: gifts, Paper Management, safety, simple

Tools: Digitize Your Paper Piles

Tuesday, May 4th, 2010

If you are ready to move into the digital age with your paper records, the Neat Company can help.

The Neat Receipts portable scanner can handle receipts and invoices, business cards, and full page scanning. The accompanying software allows you to both organize the information and search for key words for quick retrieval.

“NeatWorks software uses OCR and patented parsing technology to identify and capture key information from scanned documents. On receipts, it looks for the date, vendor, amount and sales tax. On business cards, it captures all of the contact information: name, company, title, address, phone, email, website and fax.”

Watch a demonstration of this product to see its capabilities.

Empty your file cabinets onto a thumb drive or your computer’s hard drive to save space and for searchable digital files. How neat!

Posted in Featured, Paper Management, Product Review | Comments Off
Tags: efficiency, Paper Management, reference files

Jill’s Story, Behind the Scenes Coaching on De-Cluttering

Friday, March 12th, 2010

You want to soar, stuff gets in the way (neoliminal/Flickr)

Over the last month or so, Jill and I have been emailing back and forth. She shared that she is finally motivated to let go of all the paper she has been storing with her business. I hope you will be encouraged by her story. I asked Jill if I could share our email correspondence. She was surprised that I thought she could be of help to someone else, but agreed graciously. I will post her “Before” pictures soon. Jill has promised to show us her “After” pictures when she gets more work done. I think she has come a very long way already!

Hello Martha:

I have enjoyed reading your 60 tips. Nice to know that I am on the right track and not as bad as I thought!!!

I have my own business as a graphic designer/marketer/printier and I am a paper hoarder. I save samples of my work, sayings, books, reference materials, magazines, business journals, catalogs, postcards, etc. I have the thought of “just in case”

In my office, I have 5 file cabinets with 15 drawers, book shelves, cabinets, etc. with these items stored. I even have the paper piles on the floor in my office which I can’t seem to get through and is driving me crazy….I know it is a bit of OCD. …but I am trying to plow through.

Here is my Serious question: How do you deal with samples, catalogs, etc.? I have had them on file for their information and use as photos of an item, like a magnet, shirt, signage, etc. Do I input all of the info about the catalog/company in a database and pitch the catalogs? Keep them? ETC? I was just trying to make room in my files for other info and to reduce the weight on my floor!

Help! I could really use your advice. Thank you so much.

Jill

Hi Jill!

I am so glad you found the report helpful. Yay! You have systems in place already!

It sounds like you have a filing system for your work-related papers. Before I answer your question of “How do you deal with samples, catalogs, etc?” I want to get a little clarification:

How often do you use what is in the files in your present projects?
Are you able to find what you need when you go to look for it?
Do you replace the old catalogs with the latest version when it comes?

In principle, you probably use only 20% of what you have. The only trick will be to figure out what that percentage represents in your mix.

I may be able to get some hints from your answers to the questions.

You are brave to ask the questions, Jill. Kudos!

Martha Clouse
Professional Organizer and Speaker

Click to continue »

Posted in Downsize / Move, Featured, Home Life, Paper Management, SOHO Small Office/Home Office | Comments Off
Tags: accountable, clutter, coaching, disorganization, downsize, encourage, focus, get started, Paper Management, personality, reference files, small spaces, storage

Pretty Post-its – New Organizing Solutions

Friday, January 29th, 2010

Some days it pays to be a National Association of Professional Organizer (NAPO) member. This week I received a packet from 3M with samples of the new Post-it offerings we have been seeing on commercials lately. The not so subtle hint read, “6 Great Blog Topics for 2010.”

OK, I will share the love. These are my 3 favorites.

1. Durable Filing Tabs – 2″ square tabs that attach securely to any file folder, can be used for creating subcategories in hanging files. At Office Max, four assorted colors, 24 total tabs, $2.99.

2. Removable label pads- have full adhesive backs, are repositionable, and remove cleanly. Use these to label any size storage container. My favorite is the 225 piece neon assortment from Amazon at $9.40.

3. Post-it pockets – Lightweight plastic sleeves that peel and stick on the wall. These are pretty, antique floral prints in three sizes- receipt, bill, and letter. I want the letter size pockets, 1 pink and 1 blue, $6.99.

It always helps to have more options for paper management and labeling storage. Thanks 3M for the presents.

Posted in Featured, Paper Management, Product Review, Tips and Tricks | 2 Responses »
Tags: benefits, efficiency. organizing, organizing products, Paper Management, reference files, storage

Drowning in Paper? Do the Perennial Paper Purge!

Friday, December 18th, 2009

Most small businesses and family units use the calendar year as their fiscal year for tax purposes. That makes December the wrap-it-up month (no pun intended) of the fiscal year.

Whether you celebrate Hanukah, Christmas or another holy day, the pace at the office and at home slows that last week of December. Perhaps it is because your colleagues take vacation, school activities are on hold, and the kids are busy playing with new toys. As of this writing that week will be here in 8 days!

Take advantage of the slow down to shake out files from 2009. Here are a few ideas to get your reduction juices going.

Weed out articles you thought you would read, but never got around to.
Finish recording new addresses and recycle the holiday cards.
Enter automobile expenses into a spreadsheet and ditch the gas receipts and repair bills.
Make files for your hobbies and fill with those good ideas that you have floating around.
Donate any magazines you have not read to a doctor, dentist, or senior center.
Take all newspaper piles to your nearest animal shelter.
Print out record retention guidelines and write in bold letters next to each category the earliest month and year that should be kept. (Ex. Pay stubs - January 2009, until verified with W-2, birth certificate – PERMANENTLY)
The ABC’s of Important Papers – Julie Morgenstern

What Financial Records to Keep and How Long to Keep Them – Bankrate.com
Shred documents in each category that are have dates prior to your cut off.
Get a head start on tax preparation by pulling together all of your charitable receipts and business expenses. A couple of hours of work now can mean a speedy refund by March. Be aware that your accountant has the last word on which documents you need to complete tax forms. When in doubt, do NOT throw it out!

Have your paper shredder handy for sensitive documents, along with a box or black trash bag for papers you can’t recycle.

Paper purging is best done with a refreshing drink in front of those Bowl games, while watching the kids play on the floor, or with soothing music in the background. Think of it as a “paper purging party!” You will be that much ahead going into the New Year!

Posted in Featured, Holidays, Home Life, Paper Management, SOHO Small Office/Home Office | 2 Responses »
Tags: benefits, get organized, get started, Holidays, Paper Management, strategy

Organizing Your Child’s Masterpieces

Friday, September 11th, 2009

A mom of three recently posed a question on my blog, “I am curious as to how you organize all the school papers and awards throughout 13 years!” This is a great question!

A masterpiece!

With my older two, I tried to make a scrapbook of their special awards, papers, notes from grandparents, etc. What I found was that some things they wanted to save were 3-dimensional. So, we progressed to a “scrapbook box”, using one of the containers with the hinged interlocking lids (sturdy, stackable, and the lids are attached, so never lost!)

An excerpt from fellow blogger mom Jennifer gives this slant on it
(http://www.ceomom.com/tips/722-organizing-kids-school-papers-and-projects)

While growing up, I had a very organized mom. She had a storage bin for each of us kids that she would put papers, memories, pictures, trophies, etc. in. Then one day when we were all grown up, she gave us the box. There was no scrambling to gather items – She literally said: “Here’s your box” and it seemed my whole life memories were contained in it. I loved it! I still have my box.

I have done the same thing with my girls. I have two storage bins in a lilac color, so I easily know which bins are my girls. When they do a project or a school paper that I want to keep, I scribble their name, age and date on it and throw it (yes, throw it) in the box.

I agree with Jennifer that noting a name, date, possibly a 2-3 word hint on the back (what the heck is this?) is a good idea.

If I were starting today and focusing on school papers, I would get one of the plastic file boxes http://bit.ly/4uYjEG and use hanging legal files http://bit.ly/fLk98 with expandable bottoms – one for each school year. This system will give you room for some larger, fatter items. If papers for the year exceed a folder, you can cull the best after the school year ends. That would be a great summer’s day activity with your child!

These are a couple websites that have storage solutions for larger art:

Schoolfolio – http://www.schoolfolio.com/products/single/index.php These are large, archival quality.

Potter Barn – http://bit.ly/2fkg3C Different sizes, not as large, acid free

If price is an issue – do the saving now, make notes on each piece, place in an inexpensive storage bin. You can always change/improve your system when you have more time, money, and energy. Enjoy these early years now!

Posted in Home Life, Shopping Guide, Tips and Tricks | Comments Off
Tags: howto, organizing, Paper Management, students

7 Tools for Paper Management

Wednesday, August 26th, 2009

This is a short post, a list really, meant to spur your thinking, “Do I have these basic tools?” and “Could having these in place save me time, money and frustration?” Here goes! The 7 tools that are must haves for effective paper management are:

Extra Large Waste Basket (round file), emptied frequently to keep the mindset of “must fill it up” working for you.
Cross-cut Shredder where you open your mail.
Calendar, paper or electronic, to capture appointments, master and daily to-do lists
Tickler File for date specific action reminders and ongoing permanent actions like “to call, to write, to pay”, etc.
Action File system for current projects that have a beginning and an end.
Contact Storage System to easily find personal and business contacts.
Reference File system for long term storage of completed action files and legal/tax forms.

A last suggestion to keep paper piles to a minimum – take steps to reduce the influx of paper, especially via mail. Two websites to start:

www.catalogchoice.com – end unwanted mail order catalogs

www.optoutscreen.com – stop unwanted credit offers

Less of anything is easier to organize. Go forth and reduce!

Posted in SOHO Small Office/Home Office, Tips and Tricks | Comments Off
Tags: calendar, Paper Management, piling, tickler file