Thursday, November 1, 2012

Paper Clutter, The Bane of My Existence




I have a few confessions to make, I am a procrastinator, I dont always put things back where they belong, I misplace things and stress myself out trying to find them, basically I am a disorganized mess. My house is clean, but DIS-OR-GO-NIZED. I dont have systems in place that work, I dont have a morning routine unless you consider running around like a chicken with my head cut off a routine. I have purchased all sorts or "self help" organizing books in the past, they are currently burriend in a closet  or drawer somewhere, perhaps its in here....

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You see the problem isn't that I didnt have the tools to get organized. The books I read have great ideas, tips, and tools for anyone to get organized. As bad as I hate to admit it, the problem is ME. What I have realized is that until I accept responsiblity for the mess and disorganization and DISCIPLINE myself to fix it, no organization book is going to help me...Did I come to this realization on my own, of course not? I might have a MSW degree, but I dont "Social Work" myself.  I stumbled across this e-book and after reading the first few pages its like a light bulb went off... I highly recommend it.....


The author of  21 Days To A More Disciplined Life Crystal Paine,writes over at Money Saving Mom. From what I have read so far Crystal is like most of us with the struggles of everyday life and getting goals accomplished. She shares a lot of her personal experience in the book. The book is an easy read and she helps you set realistic and  reasonable goals.  Over the next 21 days she encourages readers to complete one Mega Project that you have been putting off for whatever reason. I have a list a mile long of projects that I have been putting off FOR-EVA....but when I really thought about what would make a big difference in my  household, I decided to tackle Organizing my PAPER CLUTTER, I bet you thought I was going to tackle that dreadful closet I showed you....

Breaking the project down into small and manageable goals is key to success according to Crystal..So for Day 1 of Operation Paper Control I simply went through the papers covering my kitchen counter.





Sorted through all thepapers, and placed them into piles by type.  




a lot of piles for one little corner, huh

I found a stack of EXPIRED coupons that I had to trash, I was soooooo disappointed but luckily all these store coupons are good through the end of November, perfect for Christmas shopping....





and I even found a $24.00 check and $10.00 in cash, yeah buddy...



At this point, I simply wrote a list of all the different categories of paper clutter that I have and I called it a night, simple as that.

My list looked a little like this 
  • Magazines
  • Grocery Coupons
  • Retail Store Coupons
  • Bills to Pay
  • Items to File
  • Cards (from graduation and some as far back as last Christmas)
  • Little man's school work
As you can see I have a lot to work on in the next 21 days.....How do you handle paper clutter?

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