Posts Tagged ‘office organizing’

Organizing Papers for the AD/HD Mind

March 31st, 2010

Find PapersAs intimidating as paper seems, a few simple habits will help you keep it under control. I’ve written previously about how to handle incoming mail, so I’m going to focus here on handling papers you need to keep for reference. Many of my clients have a fear of filing: if they put a document in a file, they fear they’ll never find it again. But how findable are those same documents if they’re buried in piles and scattered throughout your home or office? Here are some things you can do to create a filing system you trust:

Choose vertical over horizontal. When papers are in a pile, only the item on top is visible, meaning you’ll have to spend time digging through the piles to find a specific item. Using a vertical system will allow you to find papers more quickly because you can see more than one item at a time. Desktop file holders, filing carts and crates, and step files all provide vertical filing while still keeping things in view rather than tucked away in a file drawer.

DESKTOP FILE HOLDER

File Crate File Cart

STEP FILE 

Use color to provide visual cues. Establish meaningful yet broad file categories and assign various colors to each category, using colored file folders to distinguish them. This will help you find papers quickly. For example, your financial information might be in green files, medical information in red files, and personal interest information in blue files. Not only will you learn to find things quickly by going to the proper color section of your filing system, but you’ll quickly see when something is filed out of place because the color will stand out. Here’s a picture of my own file cabinet – notice how the colored sections are easy to see.Color-coded file cabinet

Use other techniques to “see” your papers when they’re filed. If you still feel uneasy putting papers in file folders for fear of forgetting them, use clear hanging files, project files, or hanging plastic bags to file your papers. Create an index of your file folders so you can quickly scan the list to trigger your memory of what you’ve filed. You can also refer to the index before creating a new file to make sure papers don’t already have a home.

clear file folders

Project File

 

Create a work zone on your desk. Have you ever had papers disappear from your desk, only to be discovered later in a pile or file where they didn’t belong? Keeping an area of your desk clear for only the documents you’re currently working on will help prevent papers from disappearing into the wrong pile or file.

Let me know which of these techniques work for you, or if you’ve found other ways to turn your paper piles into smiles.

Best wishes,

Signature_Sue

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Posted in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Chronic Disorganization, Filing, Organizing Process, Paper Organizing

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Are You in a Period of Change or Transition?

February 10th, 2010

Emerging monarchI’ve recently earned the Certificate of Study in Life Transitions  from the National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization . Understanding the concept and process of transition is critical to the organizing process, so I’m passing along some information on that subject that may help you understand and overcome your organizing challenges.

In his book Transitions: Making Sense of Life’s Changes, William Bridges differentiates change versus transition. “Change,” he says, “is situational.” Things like a move to a new city, the birth of a baby or the death of a parent constitute change. “Transition, on the other hand, is psychological. It is not those events, but rather the inner reorientation and self-redefinition that you have to go through in order to incorporate any of those changes in your life. Unless transition happens, the change won’t work, because it doesn’t take.”

The organizing process typically involves both of these elements – getting organized involves change, but staying organized requires transition. That’s because disorganization is a merely a symptom of something deeper (e.g., physical difficulties, family issues, ADD/ADHD), and unless that underlying root cause is uncovered, the physical changes brought on by getting organized won’t last for the long term. On the surface, there’s clutter, missed appointments, bills that are paid late, and general disarray. But something deeper is causing this chaos, and when I’m working with a client, it’s part of my job to find out what that is.

If you’re ready to make a change and get organized, be sure to dig deeper and uncover the root causes of your disorganization so you can not only change your environment, but actually make the transition to a life of organization. The National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization has a fact sheet that can help you identify some of the causes of your disorganization. Download this free information to help analyze the source of disorganization in your life. I’d love to hear what you discover about yourself.

Signature_Sue

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Posted in Causes of Disorganization, Home Organizing, Organizing Process

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Manage Your Mail

January 27th, 2010

The U.S. Postal Service reported that in 2006, the average household received 29 pieces of mail per week. Sometimes it seems like I get that many pieces a day! In order to prevent the mail from overtaking your home or office, try these tips:

  • Have a designated place to put incoming mail until you’re ready to open it. The kitchen counter or table isn’t usually a good idea unless you’d like the mail to accompany your dinner!
  •  Make time every day to go through the mail. Otherwise you may feel like the postal carrier Newman from the Seinfeld TV show. If possible, try to go through the mail at the same time each day (e.g., right when you bring it in, after dinner, before bed, in the morning, during your commute on public transportation, etc.); this will help make daily processing a habit.
  •  For each piece of mail, decide what the next action is that you need to take on it, and then do something purposeful to move it along on its journey. Possible actions include disposing of it (throwing it out, recycling it, or shredding it), paying it, making a phone call about it, filing it, or reading it. If you can’t take the appropriate action right away, use Action Notes to remind yourself of what the next action is.

action_notes

Put this processed mail that still need action into a desktop file holder, project file, or PilesSmart® system sorted according to the required action. 

  • Schedule time during your week to take the appropriate action on the papers in your action system. 

Enjoy knowing that new paper piles are less likely to appear in your home or office because you’ve got a system set up to manage and organize the mail.

Best wishes as you turn those paper piles into smiles,

Signature_Sue

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Posted in Mail Handling, Paper Organizing

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Top Ten Organizing Tips

December 30th, 2009

Top 10January is Get Organized (GO) month as designated by the National Association of Professional Organizers because so many people make New Year’s resolutions to get organized.  If getting organized is your goal, you may be overwhelmed by the seeming enormity of the job. To make that goal less intimidating, I’m offering my top 10 list of things I recommend you do to get your life in order. Good luck as you start creating order in your disorganized world:

1. Make a daily to-do list and follow it. Most people have no problem creating the list – it’s the “following” part that causes problems. Prioritize your list by asking, “If I can only get one thing done today, what must it be?” and then get rolling.

2. Control interruptions. We often interrupt ourselves more than other people interrupt us. Pay attention to how often you use the telephone, television, internet (yes, even blogs!), email, etc. as ways to procrastinate. Identify specific times during the day to give those items your attention, and specific times to work on whatever you determined was important for the day.

3. Have a place for everything. Try to store things near where you use them and store similar things together. I’ll admit that sometimes it makes sense to store similar items in a number of places because they’re used in a number of places: light bulbs and batteries, for example.

4. Put everything in its place. Whether it’s items you’ve brought in from the store, clean laundry, the day’s mail, or your keys, put things where they belong – it usually only takes a fraction of a minute longer to put something away rather than putting it “here for now.” And at the end of the day, be sure to clean up areas that have gotten messy – it’s calming and productive to enter a room or office with clear surfaces, and you won’t have to start the day cleaning up yesterday’s work.

5. Let go of things regularly. Match (or even accelerate) the outflow of things to the inflow of things; otherwise you’ll find yourself drowning in clutter. Donate, sell, give away, throw away, shred, etc. as appropriate.

6. Process the mail daily. Toss the junk, shred sensitive information you don’t need, and decide what to do with what’s left. Create a place where mail that needs action can “live” until you do whatever needs to be done with it.

7. Process email efficiently. Once you open an email, process it thoroughly (reply, delete, file, mark for future action, etc.) before moving on to the next email. Otherwise you’ll waste lots of time re-reading emails until you finally take action.

8. Set up a filing system. Only save papers you need for tax or legal reasons or are certain you’ll refer to in the future. Create a filing system you can trust – ask yourself, “Where will I look for this item when I need it?” rather than “where should I put this?”

9. Learn to say “no.” Take control of your life instead of letting others control it –identify what’s important to you and live your life around those things. If you agree to take on obligations you resent or for which you don’t have time, you’re not going to be of help to anyone, and you’ll take away room for the things that enrich your life.

10. Be realistic about your reading pile. Give yourself a deadline to get through the magazines and newspapers you receive. If the new issue comes in and you still haven’t read the prior one, give yourself a couple of days to read it or let it go. It might also be a good time to evaluate which periodicals are worth the investment of your time.

And here’s a bonus tip: don’t be afraid to ask for help. A non-judgmental friend or family member might be able to help you make decisions or do some of the physical work. Of course From Piles to Smiles can also provide a personalized plan of action as well as hand-on help or telephone coaching. I’d love to hear from you – what do you find most challenging about getting organized? 

Warmly,

Signature_Sue

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Posted in Organizing Process

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