Paper Pile Management ~ Part 1

Once upon a time there was a filing cabinet. Though it held files sufficiently, it was a pain to open and use effectively. Piles upon piles of paper became stacked upon it and nothing could ever be found. Then one day an organizing addict came along and ... well you get the point. 

We have had this plastic filing cabinet forever. 

It holds hanging file folders and it's on wheels so it's easy to move from one place to the next, but that is about the end of it's positive traits. 

It's hard to get into the files towards the back of the drawers because the drawers don't open all the way and, when the drawers do open as far as they can be opened, the cabinet tips over. 

Due to these annoyances, our paper filing most often got set on top of the cabinet which is not an efficient means of organizing all the paper that comes into our home. So I decided it was time for a change!

To start this project, I went through every folder and purged anything we no longer needed. Then I reorganized the remaining contents into date order. By the time I was done, I had about 8 inches of paper to shred or recycle! (Not sure what to keep and what to purge? Check out these resources: Resource 1, Resource 2, Resource 3)

I didn't want to put the newly organized hanging files back into that filing cabinet because I knew the cycle would repeat itself. At the same time, I didn't want to go out and spend money on a new filing cabinet. Luckily, I was able to find the perfect solution already in our home. We have a nice desk area built into the dining room. One day (far far from now) I imagine our office will be used as a bedroom so I'm hoping to move our office space into this built in area gradually. Behind two of the cabinet doors are these wonderful drawers, split into two compartments. The forward most compartment is the perfect size for file folders. I was hoping I'd be able to use my existing hanging file folders but the compartment is just a hair too wide. That gave me an excuse to make up some new pretty folders!

I found some traditional file folders at the dollar store priced 10/$1. I grabbed some filing folder labels at Office Max and printed them with a simple background to add some color.

I affixed the labels onto the new folders and put them in alphabetical order.

Then I put all the organized paperwork into the new folders and put them in their new home. They fit perfectly!

Organizing our paper filing didn't stop there though. As I was going through each folder and purging what we didn't need, I noticed two distinct categories: Active files and Inactive files. The active files are the ones in which paper is being added to them on a regular basis such as pet files, insurance policies, car repairs, etc. The inactive files are the ones in which paper is no longer being added to them or is only added on a very limited basis. These include tax files from previous years, certificates or awards the mister or I receive, etc. It made sense to put the active files in this new easily accessible location but I didn't want to clutter the drawer with all of the inactive files. Stay tuned for how I decided to organize those!

Does your filing system encourage you to keep paper organized, or are you in the same boat I was with a stack of paper on top of your cabinet?