Category Archives: home office

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Posted in Decluttering, home office, Organizing, Paper Clutter, Planning, Simplicity

How To Make Room in Your File Drawer

Posted on July 28, 2009 | Leave a comment

This week I went through several files in my file drawer. Here is the pile of papers I decluttered from the draw and put in the recycling bin. It measured over 3 inches. There’s a lot more room in the drawer now!

Below is this weeks’ newsletter on how I went about decluttering the files that contained warranties, instruction manuals, and other papers on products I own. This project is easy to do while watching TV. Doing a little each night will make a big difference before you know it.

Decluttering Tip Newsletter – Paper Clutter (stuffed file drawers)
Volume 2, Issue 28
July 28, 2009

I’ve been working on my ebook on paper clutter. It should be ready for purchase mid to late August. While doing the research I come across many ideas to help control the paper clutter. One of the main questions that keeps coming up is how to declutter all the papers we store in our file drawers or boxes. If your storage drawers are anything like mine then they may be stuffed to the gills. It is time to declutter them.

I figure I have to walk the walk to be able to help you with the best tips. I decided to start with the file folders containing all the warranties, instructions manuals, and other papers for all the products I own. With separate files for kitchen appliances, outdoor/lawn equipment, small household appliances, toys/game instructions, TV & stereo equipment, and small personal appliances, it took a few days to get through all of them.

I now have a pile of papers almost 3 inches thick to go into the recycling bin. That has opened up a lot of room in my file draw.

So how did I do it? It’s easy. I worked on the decluttering while watching TV in the evening. These kinds of papers don’t take a lot of concentration or big decision making. If you have been in the habit of filing all the papers that come with a product then you probably have a lot of papers you don’t need to keep.

Follow these steps to a less stuffed file drawer.

1. Tools you will need: scissors, stapler, and a staple puller is helpful if you have one.

2. Take one file folder that contains warranties and instruction manuals for products you own.

3. Pull out all the warranty cards that have never been filled out. I fill out warranties online for major purchases. Your original receipt with date of purchase is usually the only paper your need.

4. Pull out all papers for products you no longer own. If you haven’t gone through your files for a while you will probably find a few. I know I did.

5. Look at each instruction/owners manual. Most are in several languages, one part English, another part Spanish, and possibly more languages. Tear or cut out the languages you don’t use. This is were a staple puller comes in handy along with the scissors. Once you have separated the papers then staple the ones in the language you are keeping and recycle to rest.

6. If you want to eliminate even more papers you could just keep the information on the model you have and contact information. Most manuals can be found on the product’s website. Check first before you get rid of the information on how to use the product and the trouble shooting page. These are the main pages you may need at some point.

If you have any other ideas on how to declutter these kinds of papers please leave a comment.

Please feel free to forward this entire blog post to friends and family that may benefit from this tip.

Also, if you are going on vacation soon and are traveling by car with children you will want to check out my blog post : http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=236
I have a lot of websites listed for car travel games. Plan ahead to keep boredom from ruining your trip.

To a lighter load along the way.

Janice Scissors
http://cutclutterwithscissors.com
http://twitter.com/jlscissors

Posted in Decluttering, Home, home office, Organizing, Paper Clutter

Paper Clutter – Receipts

Posted on April 13, 2009 | Leave a comment

After I finish my taxes I work on getting my files in order for this next year. I have a file folder in my cabinet where I put most of my receipts. These can be for clothing, misc. household items, and most charge card receipts.

At this time of year I go through all those receipts from the previous year. It’s easy to do while watching TV in the evening. I only keep those that are for products that have a warranty or if there is a reason to know when an item was purchased. If there is a warranty card or instruction book for a product I will staple the receipt to it. If the item belongs in a specific folder such as “small household items”, or “TV’s, Stereos”, it’s put in there for easy retrieval.

All other receipts are kept in a manila file folder labeled for the year. They could also be kept in an envelope if you don’t have too many.

The ones I throw out or shred are for the athletic shoes that are already worn out or the receipts for the groceries and household products that are long used up. It’s an easy decision to throw away those receipts.

Janice S.

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

Posted in Calendar, Decluttering, home office, Organizing, Paper Clutter

Feeling Unorganized Today?

Posted on April 3, 2009 | Leave a comment

Some days I just feel like I’m unorganized. My desk is a mess. The mail is piling up. The dishes are filling the sink. The hot spots are growing (I think by themselves). I don’t remember leaving that book laying on the table or my clothes on the bed.

It doesn’t take long for the messes to grow. After all, you are living in your home. That’s a good thing. But when things start getting out of control it is time to take some cleaning action.

Some days are 15 minute days and some are 5 minute days. By this I mean I set a timer for 15 minutes to tackle a certain job that needs to be done. A lot can be accomplished in 15 minutes. It’s usually not to hard to focus for that short period of time and clean up the kitchen, family room, or home office.

But some days 15 minutes seems like too much time to take away from the other responsibilities for the day. That’s when the 5 minute day comes in. Set a timer for 5 minutes and narrow your focus on one small spot. Clean as many dishes as you can for 5 minutes. Don’t worry if you don’t get them all done. What’s important is that you took care of some of the mess. It will be a lot cleaner now than it was 5 minutes ago.

What I do on days like this is work for about 30 minutes on my writing then take a 5 minute break to clean up one of those hot spots. It’s amazing how much gets cleaned up by the end of the day.

What tricks to you use to get organized on those days you feel overwhelmed? Please share them in the comment section.

Thanks.

Janice

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

Check out my eHow articles.

Janice
http://cutclutterwithscissors.com
http://cutoutthebreastcancer.wordpress.com

Posted in Decluttering, Home, home office, Organizing

Organize Your Home Office Day

Posted on March 10, 2009 | Leave a comment

Today is “Organize Your Home Office Day”. Everyone has a home office whether it is for work, personal, or both. Below is a copy of my free weekly newsletter I send to my subscribers. I don’t normally post it on this blog so if you are not a subscriber please sign up on the right sidebar to receive future newsletters. The link for the March monthly newsletter is also posted on the right sidebar.

Decluttering Tip Newsletter – Home Office
Volume 2, Issue 10

Today is “Organize Your Home Office Day”. It would be nice to be able to take a whole day to organize your office. I don’t have a whole day for it and I doubt you do either. So I’m suggesting a “Organize Your Home Office Week”. By doing a little each day you will have your office decluttered and running efficiently by the end of the week.
If you work out of your home you probably have an office set up in a spare room or at least a corner of a room. If your home office is for personal use then you may not have a permanent office set up. It doesn’t matter. You can still organize your “home office” to help tackle that paperwork as efficiently as possible.
The easiest way I find to have an efficient and decluttered office is to break it into zones. There are three main zones and they will work whether you have a permanent office or a portable office. They are your “Active” zone, “Semi-Active” zone, and “Inactive” zone.

ACTIVE ZONE
This area will be the desk or table you sit at and do your work. You’ll want to have all the supplies you use on a daily basis within arms reach. This would be the pens, notepaper, envelopes, stamps, bills, calendar or planner, phone, stapler, and any other items you find yourself using. Look at your desk area and if there are things you rarely use then think about where else you can store them. Free up this space for the items you use daily.

If you have a portable office then you will need to have a box, briefcase, or some way to store these items so it is easy to set up your office when you need to and put it away when you are finished.

SEMI-ACTIVE ZONE
This area should be somewhere nearby where you store extra office supplies, file folders, reference books, computer software, backup disks, etc. When you need a certain file or reference book you don’t want to spend a lot of time searching for it. If you don’t have a lot of storage area for office supplies you can store them together in a box in a closet or even under the bed. If everything is kept in one place then you can easily find the extra copy paper, printer ink, staples, or pens. Unless you go through your supplies very fast because of your type work or have a large family, don’t stock up too much. It will become clutter. Inks and pens can dry out. Paper and envelopes can turn yellow.

File folders you use on a regular basis need to be in this semi-active zone. If you have room for a file draw or cabinet then keep it in this room or near the area. Remember, this is for active files only so you shouldn’t need a wall full of file cabinets. Portable file boxes can be used if you don’t have room for a permanent file draw.

INACTIVE ZONE
This is where you will keep all the inactive files that you don’t need to access more than once a year. Old tax returns, old bank statements, canceled checks, etc. These can be stored in the back of a closet, under a bed, or in an attic. I don’t recommend storing papers in a basement unless it is a finished area that you know is not damp.

This week focus mainly on the active zone and the semi-active zone. When these two zones are organized you will find you can get your work done more efficiently.

Decluttering and organizing the inactive zone would be a good rainy day weekend project. It won’t affect your daily work like the other zones but is still important in the long run.

To a lighter load along the way.

Please forward this newsletter to anyone you know who may benefit from this tip.

Posted in Decluttering, Home, home office, Organizing

Paper Clutter to the Recycling Bin

Posted on January 16, 2009 | 1 Comment

Do you have a file folder filled with cut out articles and/or recipes tucked away in a drawer or box? When was the last time you looked into this file folder?

Last night I continued my paper decluttering project for January. The files in my file drawer were getting so tight I could hardly fit another piece of paper in them. It was time to purge! After dinner I pulled out a couple of file folders from the back of the drawer. I sat down on the couch and while watching TV went through them.

The first file had a bunch of catalogs from a book club I no longer belong to. They weren’t too old but needed to be filed in the recycling bin. The other file folder had some recipes and articles I had cut out from magazines. After going through the recipes I only found one I wanted to try. The articles all seemed a little outdated. Since they were torn out of magazines some of the pages had the date of the issue on them. Do you think articles from 1992 are a little old?

That’s right. I have kept this file folder for over 16 years and didn’t bother to look at it. I guess those articles really weren’t so important to keep. I wonder how many other outdated articles are hiding in file folders. I think I will be pulling one folder out each night and decluttering them.

It felt real good last night to put those old papers into the recycling bin.

Janice

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Posted in Decluttering, home office, Organizing, Paper Clutter

"Clean Off Your Desk Day"

Posted on January 12, 2009 | Leave a comment

Today is “Clean off Your Desk Day“. It is always easier to work at a clean desk than one that is cluttered up with papers, pens, coffee mugs, water bottles, and lots of other misc. items. As I am typing this I can see I have a little work to do with my desk. I will set a timer for 15 minutes and clean it up.

With January being “National Get Organized Month” I have decided it was time to go through my bookcases and declutter some books and notebooks. I don’t have any more room on the shelves so books and papers are starting to stack up on the floor. Time to reorganize.

I decided to add a new bookcase. I had room to move a small, three shelf one to another area and put a new five shelf one in its old place. This will give me more room to put the books and notebooks. Sometimes we have to change things to make them work more efficiently for us.

Once I get the new bookshelf built (hopefully by tonight) I will put everything on the shelves. It won’t be organized just yet but I will take care of that later. I will go through one shelf at a time and get rid of any books I don’t need. This way will be better than trying to tackle the whole mess at once. It’s too easy to get overwhelmed.

Time to go clean off my desk!

Janice