Conquering Mail Clutter
Don’t let mail take over your kitchen, just don’t. I promise I have a strategy that will blow your mind because it’s so simple, and it works!
Most of the clients I’ve worked with have a problem with mail. Whether it gets piled high on a surface or in some type of box they bought hoping to help organize it.
It’s one of those things that can cause headaches, especially when we end up missing a bill or losing an important document.
Are you ready to hear my strategy?
Here goes.
Bring the mail inside when you know you will have 3-5 minutes to handle it. When you bring it into the kitchen (or wherever you typically pile it), sort it and deal with it right away.
Listed below are the main categories with advice on what to do with each. Look at the piece of mail, mentally put it into a category, and follow through accordingly.
Junk – throw it out right away, recycling or trash
Coupons – keep what corresponds with your grocery/shopping list only if you regularly use them. Put them in your purse, wallet, or bag to be used within a month.
Bills – Most bills can be sent electronically now. I encourage this as it saves on paper and saves on storage space. For those paper bills you still get, either pay them right away, or put them somewhere to store them until they are paid. My top drawer in my desk has a basket designated for the few paper bills I still receive. I put the bills in order of due date, and check the drawer once a week as I’m paying bills.
Important Documents – File these right away. I will bet you don’t get one every day, maybe not even every week. They don’t need to be stored in a “To Do” tray when they can be filed in a matter of seconds.
Invitations – Insert the date into your calendar. If you have a bulletin board or use part of the refrigerator for these, hang the invitation. But only until the event has passed. Then take them down and toss.
Magazines – Place in your designated spot for magazines right away. Give away, recycle, or trash the previous month’s issue.
Notes – If you’re fortunate enough to receive a handwritten notecard from those special people in your life, you may not want to rush through this. Save it for your downtime, and have stationary, a pen, and a stamp ready to return it if you’d like.
After you finish going through the mail you will be left with no pile. Just a clear surface. As you do this daily, it will become part of your routine and take a very short amount of time. I told you it was simple 🙂 Don’t wait until the perfect time to start because that never comes. Start today!
Thanks for reading,
MelissaGet Organized. Simply Live