How to Create an Efficient Paperwork Work Station

Keep your paper files organized with an efficient work station.

Piles of paperwork can be overwhelming. Once a mess covers your home or desk office, even thinking about organizing it can make you want to do laundry --- anything to put off the hard work of sorting. By attacking your paperwork piles systematically, you will soon have a neat series of folders from which you can find any document you want. When sorting through your papers, be careful not to throw out papers important for taxes or personal use. That said, if you haven't needed a paper in years, throw it out. Less clutter means fewer file folders.

Things You'll Need

• Desk baskets
• Hanging folders
• Labels
• Marker
• File baskets
• File cabinet (optional)

Instructions

1. Sort through your papers, dividing them into topics or categories. For work papers, you'll have documents for specific people or projects. At home, you'll have bills and receipts.

2. Create folders for each topic, writing the topic on a label. Write in big, thick lettering so that the topic is immediately legible.

3. Place the papers in the relevant topic folders. Create new folders as necessary. If one folder becomes overly stuffed, create a second folder for overflow.

4. Stack the folders flat in a wire basket or hang them in a drawer or file cabinet. Organize the folders alphabetically or in order of use. You might stack the frequently used folders in a wire basket and then hang the rest alphabetically in a drawer. Pick a system that will work best for you to increase the odds you will stick to it.

5. File incoming papers immediately. This way, you won't have a huge, daunting stack after a week that threatens to destroy all of your previous efforts. If this is impossible, dedicate a wire or plastic basket to incoming items and set time aside once a week to file the items inside.

6. Dedicate another basket to outgoing or recently finished items that will soon leave your desk. Having a basket for them will help keep your work station free of clutter.

7. Create a stash of notepads, pens and a calculator for quick notes or reminders. You can either write notes on a sticky pad and stick them on the wall or hang a small bulletin board and pin them. Using one of these methods will help you avoid lost notes.

References

• Utah State University Extension: Family and Consumer Sciences: Organizing Paperwork and Cutting Paper Piles