Bagua 6, Paperwork and Mail!
So much good new music to enjoy! How did you celebrate? With the weather this weekend looking a little bit chillier here, it feels like a good time to dive into the next bagua... This life area, according to Feng Shui For Us, is about Spirituality, Helpful People and Travel. Make a date! Saturday seems like as good a day as any!
Make a plan! For starters, we will sort through the paperwork. This could be flyers, takeout menus, invitations, bills, maybe even newspapers or bulletins from your favourite local organisation or church. To tackle big piles of paper that have been accumulated for a long time:
Consolidate your paperwork to one sorting area. Then, choose from your stack.
So much good new music to enjoy! How did you celebrate? With the weather this weekend looking a little bit chillier here, it feels like a good time to dive into the next bagua... This life area, according to Feng Shui For Us, is about Spirituality, Helpful People and Travel. Make a date! Saturday seems like as good a day as any!
Make a plan! For starters, we will sort through the paperwork. This could be flyers, takeout menus, invitations, bills, maybe even newspapers or bulletins from your favourite local organisation or church. To tackle big piles of paper that have been accumulated for a long time:
Consolidate your paperwork to one sorting area. Then, choose from your stack.
- Items that are junk and can be put away in the recycling bin.
- Items that you would like to keep but don't actually need to keep. Place them in a filing box or accordion file marked accordingly.
- Items that can be filed and don't require any further action on your part. Place them in a filing box or accordion file marked accordingly.
- Items that require an action on your part. Place them in the appropriate folders of your temporary file
Then, go through the three filing boxes you created above and decide whether to recycle, take action and file or keep the items in the box. Consider upgrading to a permanent filing system that is big enough to take care of your filing needs. If you already have a filing cabinet (as I do), put items in their respective file folders, each folder in alphabetical order, front (A) to back (Z). I usually file newest items in the back of the folder, then cycle them out from the front to be shredded or recycled when appropriate (I usually shred bills about every 6 months, and keep a years worth on file).
Another consideration, if you haven't already, is to go green and go paperless! Most financial institutions and such will have a certain amount of bills on file online for your convenience anyway.
The next challenge is the mail. One of my Consultant Moms said that she has heard the mantra, "You should only handle mail once." My paper recycling is between the two doors in my entryway, so I grab the mail from the box, and don't even let it get in the house. Open the mail, recycle the junk and the envelopes immediately. If there is a flyer that has a coupon, take 30 seconds to leaf through the flyer, then tear off the coupon and recycle the rest. You get the idea!
(As an aside, I personally get sick of the constant junk mail and credit card offers. One of my friends recently suggested taking their business reply envelope, sealing it and tossing it back in the mail, empty. This way the business has to pay the postage! It is the little victories... Thanks James!)
In addition to your regular filing system, get a a filing system that looks like a stack of flat baskets, that keeps paper vertical in separate slots instead of an in-basket. Create at list these folders:
So, that's it! If you don't have a filing cabinet already, Craigslist, Freecycle, or Swidjit.com are great places to look here in Tiny Town. You can post a wanted or "Want-It" if you don't see anything listed!
Celebrate the first part of your victory and plan to go on to the next part of this bagua. I am going to Celebrate! my little success by indulging in one of my new favourite hobbies: Painting! While the weather is nice, I am able to get outside and bring some colour to the world! While I do, I will be dreaming of what exciting things are to come next week, when we dive into:
Next week: Part Two! Flyers, Invitations, Bulletins, Packages, and the Dreaded Phone Books!
Another consideration, if you haven't already, is to go green and go paperless! Most financial institutions and such will have a certain amount of bills on file online for your convenience anyway.
The next challenge is the mail. One of my Consultant Moms said that she has heard the mantra, "You should only handle mail once." My paper recycling is between the two doors in my entryway, so I grab the mail from the box, and don't even let it get in the house. Open the mail, recycle the junk and the envelopes immediately. If there is a flyer that has a coupon, take 30 seconds to leaf through the flyer, then tear off the coupon and recycle the rest. You get the idea!
(As an aside, I personally get sick of the constant junk mail and credit card offers. One of my friends recently suggested taking their business reply envelope, sealing it and tossing it back in the mail, empty. This way the business has to pay the postage! It is the little victories... Thanks James!)
In addition to your regular filing system, get a a filing system that looks like a stack of flat baskets, that keeps paper vertical in separate slots instead of an in-basket. Create at list these folders:
- Bills to Pay (check this one daily)
- Bills Paid (it is best to file these immediately)
- Need to file
- Events I might attend / Events I have attended / Movies I might watch (this file may not even be necessary, you can bookmark events online and/or put them in your desktop or laptop calendar)
So, that's it! If you don't have a filing cabinet already, Craigslist, Freecycle, or Swidjit.com are great places to look here in Tiny Town. You can post a wanted or "Want-It" if you don't see anything listed!
Celebrate the first part of your victory and plan to go on to the next part of this bagua. I am going to Celebrate! my little success by indulging in one of my new favourite hobbies: Painting! While the weather is nice, I am able to get outside and bring some colour to the world! While I do, I will be dreaming of what exciting things are to come next week, when we dive into:
Next week: Part Two! Flyers, Invitations, Bulletins, Packages, and the Dreaded Phone Books!
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