Free Yourself From Paper Clutter

Decide to Decide

What force lies at the bottom of paper pileups? Like all clutter problems, the culprit is deferred decision-making. It's fun to flip through the day's mail at the kitchen table, but if it's left there to molder, it'll have to be sorted again later. Chances are, important items will go missing.

Instead, decide what to do with each piece of paper the first time you handle it. Ask yourself, "Will this item need to be paid, answered or filed?" then drop the paper into the appropriate folder of your Action File. An immediate sort-and-stow operation heads off paper clutter at the source.