Figuring out what to do with all of the papers in an inbox can be challenging.  Today I am sharing what I do with all of the papers in my inbox.

The first place I put all of the paper that comes into my house is in my inbox.  Today I am going to be talking about what I do next.

WHAT TO DO WITH THE PAPERS IN MY INBOX

Since papers tend to pile up pretty quickly, it’s important for me to have a plan for what to do with all of them.  Otherwise, my inbox easily gets out of control!

Today I’m focusing on some simple tips for efficiently separating out the junk and storing important papers. Even important mail often comes with extra papers that aren’t needed.

When I go through my inbox, the papers typically either go in the recycling bin or in my filing cabinets.  I say typically because there are some exceptions to this rule.  For example, some exceptions include user manuals, coupons, pictures, sentimental items, and important papers that would need to be locked up.

Since the majority of the papers go to the recycling bin or in my filing cabinets, I will talk a little more about those papers.

[Photo by AbsolutVision on Unsplash]

 

Recycling Bin

A lot of papers that I get end up in the recycling bin.  I try to recycle as much as possible because I don’t want to fill my filing cabinets up with extra papers that I don’t need.  Below are some examples of how I reduce the amount of paper that I put in my filing cabinets.

[Photo by Steve Johnson on Unsplash]

Junk Mail & Advertisements

The most obvious papers that go into the recycling bin are junk mail and advertisements I get in the mail.  I might keep an advertisement if something looks interesting as a reminder to check it out.  However, for the most part, a lot of this stuff goes into the recycling bin.

Envelopes

Speaking of mail, I always throw out the envelopes that the mail comes in.  I like to save as much space as possible in my filing cabinets.  Envelopes can take up a surprising amount of space, especially when the papers inside of them are folded up.

Duplicates

If I get a duplicate of something, I put the extra papers in the recycling bin.  Sometimes I get papers that are not exact duplicates, but they contain duplicate information.  In that case, I get rid of the extra paper after making sure to note anything that I may need from it.

Excess

Sometimes I have papers that are stapled together, but there is an extra blank page at the end of the packet.  I rip that page out immediately and get rid of it.

If I have two papers that go together, but they were both printed on only one side of the paper, I will combine those together.  That way, I only have to store one piece of paper.  I do this with my printer by making a copy of the second page and printing it out on the back of the first paper.  This might sound like a lot of work, but it is usually pretty quick and it can save a lot of space.

[Photo by ron dyar on Unsplash]

Reminders

If there is something in my inbox that is basically a reminder to do something, I will do what I need to do and then throw that paper away.

 

Filing Cabinets

The papers that don’t get thrown in the recycling bin end up in my filing cabinets.

Some examples of papers that I file are bills, insurance papers, house related papers, paperwork for our vehicles, medical paperwork, receipts, reference materials, tax information, job information, and school information.  I plan to write a post in the future with more details about how I organize my filing cabinets.

If there is something that needs to be done with a paper, I will do that before filing it.  Then it will go into the appropriate file folder in one of my filing cabinets.

[Photo by Jean-Philippe Delberghe on Unsplash]

I try not to stuff my filing cabinets too full of papers.  I really try to think about whether or not I need to keep something before I file it.

Sometimes I get an updated version of something.  This might be something that is sent out each year that has updated dates and information for the new year.  In that case, I put the new paper in the filing cabinet and throw out the old version.  This helps me later when it is time to clean out the filing cabinets because there is less to go through.

 

 

What do you do with the papers in your inbox?  

 

Have a great day!

♥Jena♥