A 5-Step Plan for *Finally* Organizing All Your Paperwork

As a nation, the U.S. goes through a lot of paper—really a lot. Ourannual usage rateof nearly 71 million metric tons means we’re each using an average of700 pounds of paper a year．Like I said: Really a lot. And, if you’ve ever felt unable to tame your piles of paperwork that number probably seems low.

Here’s another relevant stat: Twenty three percent ofadults pay billslate because they can’t find them. But you don’t have to be a statistic! You can finally (finally) organize your paperwork. Here’s how.

One third of the more than 49,000 pieces of mail the average American receives in their lifetime is junk mail, according toNAPO．另一个令人惊叹的纸事实:根据the Direct Mail Association andUnited States Postal Service, 100 million American households receive 1.6 billion catalogs a year.

The solution? Stop the madness before it starts. Barbara Reich, owner ofLife Organizedsuggests unsubscribing from all mailing lists and paper catalogs and paying all bills online. Jarret Yoshida, principal ofJarret Yoshida Inc.agrees: “I unsubscribe myself from paper catalogs and even emails. It’s too distracting from what is important,” he says. Try a service likeecocycle.org“to stop this ecological and personal time disaster,” Yoshida adds.

Organized peoplehave a common mantra: Just do it. In other words, “Open your mail every day,” advises Sharon Lowenheim, NAPO board member and owner ofOrganizing Goddess．Specifically, she suggests opening each item and laying flat; throwing out the outer envelope; and using a sticky note to indicate important dates and action. “This will prevent you from having to reread the paper every time you come across it,” she notes.

“If a piece of paper doesn’t require action, recycle or shred immediately to avoid unnecessary paper piles,” says Lowenheim. Amy Tokos, owner ofFreshly Organized Omahaand president-elect of NAPO, agrees. She suggests having a recycling bin handy to “sort out recycling before you even set down the mail.”

If you’re on the fence about whether to keep something or not, here’s a fun fact for you: Some experts state that80 percent of us don’t ever look at paperworkonce it is filed. This is a good argument for the old adage: When in doubt, throw it out.

Create a single open box on your desk for items that need action and add these items to your to-do list. Before shutting down for the day, do a desk sweep and review your to-do list. Actions that take two minutes or less, like paying a bill, should be completed immediately. “After doing this for a week, it becomes a habit,” notes Reich.

Finally, don’t keep any paper you don’t need to keep, says Lowenheim. If it’s an important document that you think you’ll want to keep, upload it.iScanneris a handy app that—you guessed it—scans every imaginable document.