We are all electronically connected. We have emails, texts, and all that social media that keeps us so busy. Our finances, memories, agendas are safely (?) stored online or in clouds. So why do we still have all that paper clutter invading our space? Well, some people just don't know what to throw away!
Lots of stuff can be stored in your computer. Are you afraid it will be lost of stolen? Well yes, both can happen. But there are some things you can do to keep your stuff both safe and protected. For example, you can always have a backup external drive. You can use a flash drive if you use more than one pc and now a days they easily sync back and forth. We all know that there are many applications that will keep your data synced on all your devices. This goes across all platforms. Now I am not going to give you a technical review as to which product to use to store and sync your stuff. But I will suggest what you should store.
First of all, some documents need to be originals such as birth certificates, social security cards, deeds, etc. We know what we need originals for.....all that official stuff. But there are many things you need to store but you don't need an original. A scanned copy of the original will do. If you don't have a scanner you can download great free scanners for your phone. I use Quick pdf Scanner.
Here are some things you can scan and save:
1. Insurance documents
2. Warrantees (make sure first, it will be written on the document)
3. Receipts (make sure first, ask the vendor)
4. Correspondence
5. Telephone numbers/Business Cards (How many of those do you have? Its time to toss or store in your contact list)
6. Greeting Cards! I know this is hard, but unless it is really really sentimentally important toss them or frame them. Another idea is to scan them and keep a file on your pc with the cards you have received.
Then there are those papers you keep on the kitchen counter or on the dinning room table until you have time to get to them. This is inevitable in our busy lives. I keep a small basket with papers that I know I have to take action on but don't require immediate attention. On holidays or long weekends my must-do is to empty out the basket and execute those needed but not urgent tasks. Yes, I know if I were better I could schedule this for every weekend, but....it is what it is. For the papers that require immediate attention, well the word is self explanatory; DO IT IMMIDIATELY!
And who doesn't have a filing cabinet? Spring cleaning is the time to go through this for me. It depends on how many documents you acquire through the year. Once a year may not be enough for you but don't ever file it and forget it or your home will end up looking like an office with filing cabinets storing long forgotten and useless documents.
