I cannot keep Tupperware organized. I’ve struggled for YEARS because I don’t see how it all fits together, so I just throw it in the cupboard and hope for the best when I’m ready to use it. I HATED my Tupperware cupboard because I hated trying to get what I needed from it!
Until recently . . . I bought some of those containers where the lids snap together—I don’t know if that made me see the possibility or what, but I was suddenly motivated to organize the Tupperware.
I thought it was going to take at least an hour to get those containers organized . . . but you know what? It took all of twenty minutes. Once I had decided to DO IT, had my organization template, it was just a matter of stacking like with like. And now that I am aware that there is an organizational structure to my Tupperware cupboard, I have an easy time MAINTAINING it!
You can see where I’m going with this, right? Organize all of your financial paperwork and you’ll experience a lot more Zen than you think you will. Hey, if I can feel Zen about Tupperware, imagine how great you’ll feel about something that actually matters!
Top Three Reasons To Get Organized
- Every system needs an overhaul now and then. This gives you an opportunity to weed out all of those papers collecting dust bunnies. You’re creating physical space, but also energetic space for your current life instead of your past.
- Organized people do better with their money. You have to be aware and connect with your financial life in order to improve, so this gives you an opportunity once per month to reconnect.
- If you’re organized you can jump on opportunities. What if you read about a key piece of advice regarding your taxes, for example? Would you dread digging them up, or would you even know where to go? Organization helps you move quickly and strike while the iron is hot!
Organizational Tools To Get The Job Done
I think half the fun of getting organized is going to the office supply store and choosing the file storage I like best! I’m not going to constrain you by giving you a specific product, but I’ll show you mine and explain why I chose it.
First Thing To Buy: 3 Standing Files
This is an expanding file and here are the reasons I chose this specific one:
- At least 12 tabs so I can label them by month and I don’t have to get TOO obsessive and have a category for every single bill I pay (like my mother used to do)
- Portable – I can file and organize while I watch TV
- Separate – from other filing so I KNOW this is financial stuff
- Stands Up by itself so I can use both hands to organize paper (I clip back the flap cover so it doesn’t get in the way as I work)
You’re going to need two of these for sure (one of them is backup for next year); one for monthly documents and the other for annual and ongoing history/ statements—so the second one you get will maintain documents year over year, whereas the former will simply be a holding place for the rest.
Seconds Thing To Buy: 2 physical “In” Boxes
You’ll need a place to park two sets of documents: regular monthly bills and “ongoing” documents, which I’ll explain later.
But What About Paperless?
I admit, I am half in, half out of the paperless world. If I get a physical bill, I hang onto it, even if I pay it online. I download almost all statements every three months—it’s rare for me to get snail mail statements anymore! Therefore, MOST of my stuff is filed on my computer, and I scan periodically to get the rest there.
HOWEVER: I don’t scan every week, and so I need a receptacle to store paper until it gets to the scanner. That way, things don’t pile up just because I haven’t gotten around to scanning for a few months.
If you DON’T have an autofeed scanner—if you have to place every single piece of paper face down on the scanner, instead of just loading multiple sheets into a feeder—STAY WITH A PAPER SYSTEM FOR NOW.
Next week, I’ll tell you how to label your files and how you’re going to organize your documents, whether it be online or offline, but for now, commit to this action item this week:
ACTIONS THIS WEEK:
- Make a date with yourself to go to the office supply store.
- Purchase at least 2 standing files to start storing financial documents.
- They must each have at least 12 or more tabs.
- Purchase or commandeer 2 in boxes for monthly bills and ongoing documents.