A Simple Solution for all that Incoming Paper

Ah, the dreaded incoming paper.  If you’re reading this, chances are you know what I’m talking about.

It comes in day after day after day and clutters up our homes.

I could go on and on about all the different types of paper that a typical household deals with on a daily basis.  Homework, incoming school papers, bills, invitations, receipts, coupons, recipes, sentimental letters, etc.

It’s enough to drive you crazy!

Now, there are plenty of different solutions that can help you stay on top of the incoming paper.  But, let’s be honest.  Those solutions aren’t always realistic.

If you have young children (or if you’re a generally disorganized person), sorting through incoming paper throughout the day isn’t likely to happen.  It’s definitely a goal that you might want to work towards, but in the meantime, you need another solution.

So that’s what we’re going over today!  A simple solution for all that incoming paper.

This is the 4th post in a series all about household paperwork. So be sure to check out the other posts for help organizing your home filing system, your mail, and those daily papers that you use frequently.

Now let’s get right into the incoming paper!

MY STORY WITH INCOMING PAPER

When my husband comes home from work, he opens the mail on the counter.  The items that need my attention get left right there on the counter with the hope that I’ll see it and handle it appropriately.

But well, that doesn’t always work out the way it’s supposed to.  Sometimes I’m busy, or half asleep.  And sometimes I just don’t feel like dealing with it right then.

Every now and then, my preschooler brings in the mail and it ends up on the couch.  And other times, my kids leave their homework on the dining room table or even in their bedrooms.

When you include all the other miscellaneous papers that come through our door every day, it’s a recipe for a paper disaster.

As you can imagine, there have been times when we’ve had stacks of paper in pretty unusual places.  At the end of one very long week, I realized that I had spent an unnatural amount of time dealing with our random paper piles.

So I decided to make a change.

A QUICK AND EASY SOLUTION

Because of the fact that I can’t change my family’s habits, I knew that I needed to come up with a solution that would be easy for them to follow.

And what’s easier than a simple basket?!

I bought a $6 basket at Target and put it right by our main entrance.

We almost always enter through the garage door that leads right into our kitchen.  And since that is where my desk sits, it was the perfect place for everyone to drop their paper!

It also works out well since our kitchen is where most of our incoming paper tends to accumulate anyway.  The kitchen is truly the heart of our home, it’s where I empty my kid’s backpacks and my husband opens the mail.  And my older kids do their homework at the dining room table.

So I placed the basket right by our main entrance and told everyone in my family that each and every piece of paper that makes its way through our door belongs in that basket.

It doesn’t matter what it is, it all goes in there.

WHAT TYPE OF PAPER GOES IN THE BASKET

Any papers (or things) that come into our house that need to be dealt with at some point in the next week go into the basket.

• Homework
• Coupons I might want to use for groceries, clothes, family photos, etc.
• Field trip permission slip forms
• Bills
• Warranty information to register for
• Broken toys or items that need new batteries

Yes, that does say broken toys or items that need new batteries!

I’ve found that my inbox is the perfect place for these types of items.

Since I’m going through my inbox every week, these items essentially have a place on my to-do list.  When otherwise they would be left in random places around the house and eventually, just turned into clutter.

Storing them in my inbox has been working out well for us because they end up taken care of in a timely manner.

HOW OFTEN TO SORT

One day a week, I go through the basket and take care of everything.

In order to prevent my inbox from turning into a holding place, I have a little rule that I follow.

Once I’ve sorted through the papers, nothing goes back into the basket.

This is generally easy to follow since we have a couple of systems for dealing with the different types of paper.

• Anything that can be processed within a few minutes gets taken care of right then and there
• If I don’t have time to open the mail, it goes into a hanging mail organizer on the wall
• Important household documents and reference material goes in our filing cabinet
• Papers that need action or further review get transferred to a hanging file sorter on my desk
• Personal information gets destroyed or shredded
• And trash goes in the recycling bin

HOW YOU CAN MAKE THIS WORK FOR YOU

Are you wanting to implement this simple system in your home? Here’s what you need to do:

– First, get yourself a large enough basket

It’s always best to shop your house before you go out and buy anything new.

So look around and see if you have a basket that would work well for your inbox.

I didn’t have a basket that was large enough for all of our incoming paper, that’s why I bought a new one.  This is the exact basket that I purchased.

We use this same line of baskets in our pantry, our linen closet, and on our pool gear shelf.  I highly recommend them!

– Next, decide how often you will sort through everything

This will largely depend on how much paper you receive on a daily basis.

You might only need to go through your inbox once a week.  Or you may need to go through it a couple of times a week.

It’s definitely okay to change it up! But for now, decide on a frequency. Set a threshold for how long the paper will sit in your inbox.  And stick to it! 

Don’t add paperwork to your inbox that needs to be dealt with 6 months from now.  You want to avoid treating your inbox as a holding place for long-term paper.

– Then, gather all of the miscellaneous paper that’s sitting around your house

Simply go around your house and gather all the random paper piles.  And put all of them in your basket.

(Of course, if you come across something that you know you don’t need, act on it right away; usually either shred or recycle.)

– And finally, tell your family what the basket is for

Tell your spouse and your kids that any and all paper that comes into your house will go into the basket.

If you choose to use your basket as a holding place for other miscellaneous items, like broken toys, let your family know.

For older kids, you might want to tell them how often you plan to go through the box and take care of everything.  This way, they won’t put a permission slip in that needs to be returned tomorrow.  (Or at least they won’t do it all the time. 😉)

YOUR TURN

If you’re fed up with the incoming paper landing all over your house, try this simple solution!

This is a great way to make sure that you don’t misplace items, forget to pay a bill, or lose a field trip permission form.

Everything is right where you need it when you need it.  And I gotta say – a simple basket for incoming paper is a lot easier to handle than random piles of paper scattered throughout your house.

So go out and buy a simple basket today!  

Gather all the miscellaneous paper that has accumulated throughout your house and add it to your basket.

Decide on a set time to process the paper every week.  And then set an alarm on your phone so you don’t forget!

When you’re ready to organize your household documents, grab a copy of the Home Project Planner below! Use it to help you map out all of your organizing projects.

Related posts

How to Organize Daily Paperwork

The Ultimate Guide:  How to Organize Mail

11 Simple Ways to Organize Your Life This Year

How to Create an Effective Home Filing System