I rarely ever work with a client that does not ask me about how to stay on top of the massive amount of paper that comes into their home. The fact is that many people struggle with the problem of too much paper. We all feel a little guilty about throwing away glossy magazines, newspapers and newsletters, but the fact it we can't keep it all. Then there are the bills, advertisements, coupons and flyers. It all just keeps coming. Here are a few ideas about how to prevent them from coming into our house in the first place.
1. If you like magazines and newspapers, try to subscribe to them online if possible. Even the free ones may have the option of getting them online these days. Pick one or two that you really like if you must touch and feel them to enjoy them. Create a recycle pile and designate a time each week to add finished newspapers and magazines to the recycle bin. The key is to designate a specific time to put them out and stick with it.
2. If at all possible, have your bills presented to you online. Most companies offer this service, and it saves so much paper coming into the house. If you just can't bring yourself to do that, be sure to create a filing system to be able to file paid bills immediately after they are paid. Most clutter is caused by leaving piles paid bills and other correspondence in piles instead of filing immediately.
3. If you don't pay your bills online, try to do so. This allows you to schedule when bills will be paid and allows you to deal with a bill immediately when it comes to the house, instead of waiting until it is time to pay the bill. Schedule the payment and file the paper away.
4. Designate a time in your week to deal with bills, magazines and other paper that collects in the house.
5. Immediately shred all credit card offers and paper that may have your personal information on it. Keep your shredder where you open your mail and do it as it is opened. Try never to handle these items more than once.
Paper can be particularly hard to deal with and it seems to stop everyone in their tracks. This is mostly because we don't take time to make decisions about what will happen to different categories of paper that come into the house. Everyone in the family is dragging paper in every day, and rarely do they take it out with them. But having a plan to deal with bills, newspapers, flyers, advertising and school work will go a long way towards alleviating the problem.