I know… most of us hate to file. That’s one reason so many of us are battling with paper in our homes and offices. Most file cabinets are relegated to the back of closets, under the stairs or out in the garage. Some file cabinets are so full they can’t be opened, while others date back to the time of the dinosaurs and need excavation! You might even experience a genuine filing phobia every time you open a file drawer.  It’s difficult to find things when you need them and then you have no idea where to put new papers to be filed.

The first step to overcome your phobia is to re-work your filing system by understanding the types of files and how they are used.  Here’s a chart of the 3 types of files for any home or office.

Now that you have read about these 3 file type, it’s time to take the steps needed to get your file cabinet organized. What I’m about to say is not rocket science or some new age technique…

Use the K.I.S.S. method – Keep it Super Simple!

K eep the 3 types of files separate

I s it worth keeping?  Ask yourself the trigger questions and purge, purge, purge as much as possible  

S implified your categories   Re-think how you have your files labeled; using broad categories will make things easier to find and put away!

S chedule regular maintenance   This is imperative. If you’re not willing to do this step, then all the other steps won’t work! Set up yearly dates to purge files, toss papers, move files from reference to archive, and to re-evaluate your current systems.

Here are a few trigger questions to ask yourself as you sort through and purge your file cabinet.

• Is this information useful?
• Can I get this information again?
• Is this information on the internet?
• Is this information needed for tax or legal reasons?
• What’s the worst thing that would happen if I threw this away?