Spring Clean Your Paper Clutter

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*This post was sponsored by Fellowes as part of an Influencer Activation for Influence Central and all opinions expressed in my post are my own.

If there is one thing that makes me crazy, it’s clutter. More specifically, it’s paper clutter. It seems to come from everywhere, and it multiplies like crazy! The things I have found most helpful when it comes to dealing with tasks I hate is to stay on top of it and to have a strategy. If I don’t have a plan, I will always find a million reasons to just procrastinate. Then, it never seems to get done.

Can you relate?

Right now, I am highly focused on getting my indoor tasks done now before the weather gets nice. When it does, I want to be outside and not inside!

I am I looking to get these tasks done for the sake of getting them done. But, I am also on the lookout to implement new systems to help maximize my efficiency all year long. Some of the systems I have been using have gotten a bit stale and are no longer as effective.

I love the tips that Laura Stack, aka the productivity pro, has to offer when it comes to dealing with clutter.

These are the tips that will help you spring clean your paper clutter!

First, attack the paper clutter you have

File what needs to be filed, toss what needs to be tossed, and shred anything that can’t safely just be thrown out or recycled. This would include anything with personal information, account numbers, and any other vital information relevant to your identity or the identity of anyone in your family.

When it comes to shredders, I have fallen in love with the Fellowes 12Cs that shreds up to 12 sheets at once. It also has the added protection of cross shredding, which is super safe. As a mom I love that it has what they call SafeSense® technology that makes it totally safe for children and pets.

You can check out the paper shredder I have right HERE, and you can purchase one at Walmart.

I usually work on sorting and dealing with all the paper clutter on my own. Then when I have things that need to be shredded I supervise my kids using the shredder. They have so much fun doing it, and it doesn’t take too long at all with being able to shred 12 pages at once.

This was my desk and pile of paper clutter that I needed to attack this past weekend.

You’ll notice that I had everything I could need as I got started. For me, these are things like my hole puncher, sticky notes, labels, and paper clips. Of course my phone for a timer and music as well. You’ll also notice I’ve got coffee. That is a must for me to tackle tedious things most of the time.

Second, label files in a way that helps you identify what is in the file in a flash

I like color coordinating my files according to certain categories like home stuff, medical stuff, personal information and so on. If a file is purple, I know that it will contain household information like warranties and that sort of thing.

Be strategic in creating time efficient routines

When you have time planned to devote to a task such as organizing, make sure that you’ve got all the tools you need ahead of time. For instance, when planning on dealing with paper clutter, I make sure I’ve got my shredder and empty file folders handy as well as a bag for recycling stuff.

Notice in the picture below, I have everything you might need ready beforehand. Otherwise, you’ll be wasting precious time to gather these things in the midst of the de-clutter.

Work with a timer

I have spoken of this before, but it is such a handy tip. When you have a task that needs to get done, especially if it is something you’re not really looking forward to, it makes the time and the task fly by faster if you are trying to beat the clock.

Decide on a block of time to attack any task and then set a timer for that amount. Hopefully, you can work uninterrupted during that time and really get a ton of work done. Even my kids work more efficiently with timers!

Paper clutter is one of the most demanding kinds of clutter to deal with. But, it’s a matter of having the right tools and the right tricks up your sleeve to make it as painless as possible! Then, just get in there and do it!