Whew - That sounds like what Talley Sue calls "CHORE CLUTTER"......

I absolutely synchronize my filing cabinet - when I find that I have a pile of papers sitting around that are all of a particular category, I know it is time to put a new folder in the filing cabinet. I try to only put papers/receipts in one certain pocket of my purse when I'm out - anything stuck in my pocket gets lost. So I try not to put stuff there. Any paper that needs to be saved ends up with a place to go, though it may take me a while to define that place.

Good Lord, no!
You are making it WAY harder than necessary.

Deal with stuff as it comes in.. pay it, file it, done.

So, LuAnn, are you saying we shouldn't get the mail until we have time to deal with it all?

Not at all!
I am saying that when you get the mail, take ten minutes out of the 24 hour day and deal with it.

Don't make piles; that is just extra work!

I think this is a perfect example of how each of us deals with things. I actually thought a flow chart was a great idea and one I'd never thought of before.

Our routines are too simple for any type of flow chart, but I'm sure we have a mental one. Most of it consists of standing over the trash can while sorting mail and emptying pockets.

I guess I'm getting confused how so many are getting stalled on so much paperwork coming into the house. A place for bills, a place for stuff to keep like security paperwork, a spot for school/kid stuff. I don't mind having a piling place because I frequently don't get to things within a day. Right now I have paperwork for the kid's skiing classes. I need to keep it handy, but I'm not going to deal with it until next week. No point in hiding it away somewhere.

Gloria

Here is a flow chart from David Allen's book "Getting things done: the art of stress-free productivity".
(a good read BTW)

Happy well-organized New Year to all!
-Lena

Here is a link that might be useful: David Allen - Getting Things Done

Some days the mail can certainly be dispatched in 10 minutes. On those days I feel all shiney clean and organized.

But there are some pieces of mail that can't be dealt with right away. For example, I may not be able, or just don't want, to pay the property tax bill the day it comes. Or the kids' camp application may require some family discussion. So those need to go in a To Do pile/file/basket.

So this would be my flow chart:

1. Get mail

2. Is it junk of no interest?
2a. If yes - trash or shred or recycle (yet another decision)

3. Is it junk that I want to look at sometime?
3a. If yes - put in junk-of-interest pile (when do I get to that?)

4. Is it a bill or item I can deal with right now?
4a. If yes - do it, then put it in to-be-filed pile (when do I get to that?)

5. Is it something of importance that can't be done right now?
5a. If yes - put it in to-do pile.

6. Hands should be empty now, if not go back to number 1.

So now I've used up my 10 minutes and am left with 3 piles:
1) Junk of interest
2) To be filed
3) Important stuff to be done later

So there's my problem. Pile 3 gets done because it has some urgency. But I tend to let 1 and 2 pile up. And sometimes they aren't nice well-defined and contained piles. I have great sympathy for the OP's need of a flow chart. And I don't have the process hardwired in myself like Luann does. But yammering on about it here has helped.

I sort my mail as soon as it comes and throw anything I don't want directly in the trash. Bills go in a folder to be paid when I have more time and funds available. All else gets put where it belongs. my two kids (teens) get lots of mail. Magazines go in a rack in the rec room. I do bills about once a week. I have on-line banking plus I still use paper checks. I would never let a pile of mail just sit around.

Susanjn wrote:
So now I've used up my 10 minutes and am left with 3 piles:
1) Junk of interest
2) To be filed
3) Important stuff to be done later

For category 1) what might help is a filing system for "Junk of interest". One possibility is to have a set of folders for all the categories you need here - "travel ideas" "financial notes" "family fun" "art projects" - whatever works for you.

For category 2) It sounds like a quick and convenient (or even FUN?) filing system would help out. There are many resources to help in their design, I mentioned the Allen book above, I also gleaned many good ideas from Julie Morgenstern's "Organizing from the Inside Out". Morgenstern focusses on ideas that work with a person's own natural style. See her chapter on "household information centers".

And if you have category 3) under control you are doing well!

-Lena

Here is a link that might be useful: Organizing from the inside Out: The Foolproof System for Organizing Your Home, Your Office and Your Life

I've spent some time (not a lot) ANALYZING what the paper is. Seeing what it is, and figuring out what type sof paper it is. Deciding how I should handle each category.

And I've used that info to oranize my filing cabinet to create corresponding categories--that was most useful, to realize that "Sunday-school stuff" and "info about fun places we could take the kids" were categories of stuff I wanted to save, and creating places in the filing cabinet for them.

I've gotten quite fierce about throwing stuff out. And about creating a place for stuff--a place where bills go, a place where catalogs go (most go in the trash, though), a place where school or camp forms go.

And I'm *trying* to get really fierce about having time in the week to DO those papers.

I'm w/ SusanNJ--I can't "do" every piece of paper the moment I walk in the door. In fact, I can't pay the bills the moment I walk in the house (which is when the mail comes in).

The biggest thing for me is not to be lazy and irresponsible, but to insist that I set aside time to DO the papers. (and to toss the ones that don't truly need doing).

I take the mail out of the mail box. if busy I throw it on the bench. Most often I sort on the way into the house. Bills to the desk to be paid
from friends - open and read then either throw in the "mail from friends basket" or toss.
Catalogs on a pile for future reading
paper spam (ads) toss.
religious - into the Religious pile to look at later.

I just think the flow chart is extra work, making another chore of the chores.

My way, may not be great, but it's working OK: sort mail in the elevator.

Bills to be paid - to a pile in front of the TV,

Magazines, quilting stuff - to a pile to read later;

Banking mail - to a pile for later review& filing;

Empty pockets/receipts to appropriate pile on desk (for later filing)

My system is more like Luann's, deal with it quickly and immediately.

**Trash the trash
**Calendar items put on my calendar
**Items of interest put with my purse to take to work to read at lunch the next day
**Bills paid, or set on the windowsill if can't be paid that day for some reason
**Receipts thrown in a file called "Receipts" if I think I might need them
**Medical statements in a "Medical" file
**Financial statements in financial files.

I include on my calendar the due dates for anything I'm not dealing with right away. For example, if I'm not paying the property tax the day it comes I'll put a reminder on my calendar for the day I plan to pay it, or if I'm not submitting the camp application the day it comes I'll put a reminder on the calendar for that.

I had a boss once who preached the OHIO method. Only Handle it Once. Wouldn't it be great if it was that simple? Sandy

Well, today I'm going through all my piles of paper. I had this silly idea that I'd finish it today, but at this late hour it is looking unlikely.

I get a funny image in my head about the OHIO method. First I have to go thru the mail with tongs so I don't technically touch anything I can't deal with right away. If I do accidentally touch it, then I'm stuck carrying it around until I can process it. It's probably really difficult to shower while holding a camp application.

lenam, I have read the Morgenstern book. Enjoyed it very much. Now I just have to DO it. :)

Love your OHIO image!

I have the Morgenstern book. The few pages I read made a lot of sense. I think I stopped reading it at the time because I knew I wouldn't be doing anything with it real soon.

Now I'm getting ready to move. My sister and I just spent a whole afternoon going through stacks of papers - most of which went to the recycle bin and shredder.

After the move, I'll have desk again, next to the file cabinet. Theoretically I won't ever let papers pile up this bad again.

As for the flow chart, sometimes putting something down on paper helps you think through what the process should be and what will work best for you.

I keep trying different methods but realize that when I don't have the filing cabinet near my desk, I am too lazy to go to the room where it's at to file on a timely basis. Silly, I know, but it seems that I'll have to bring the filing cabinet to the desk area instead of the papers to the filing cabinet. BTW, the desk is set between the kitchen and the living room and it's becoming my paper catch-all.