When in doubt, use this checklist to figure it out.
If you haven’t got a clue how often you should check for printed and digital documents, don’t worry. We’ve got you covered! Regina Leeds, New York Times best-selling author of One Year to An Organized Life and One Year to an Organized Work Life, notes that this method of dealing with paper helps clear physical and virtual clutter in the workplace.
She mentions that having different folders for specific tasks is ideal. Setting them up ahead of time makes organizing easier. Having a BinderBag Messenger bag or Sleeve is ideal for organizing physical sheets of paper that need to be referred to often.
Your Inbox
You’ll want to make it a point to check your email daily, so you can keep up with communications coming from your work colleagues. Save, print, and file what you need to right away.
Action File
Check for items that need your immediate attention daily. When you place items in the file, it’s with the intention to address them promptly.
Pending File
This digital file should be checked weekly. It’s what you use when you’re waiting for someone else to reply or do their part of a project.
Physical File
Items that you need a physical copy of can be printed, hole punched, and placed neatly into a binder in your BinderBag on an as-needed basis. You can then transport these materials wherever you need to go and remove them after they’ve surpassed their document keep date.
Periodicals, Online Publications, and Newsletters
Delete or recycle these items at least once a week so you don’t have a collection of matter that you intend to get to one day. The longer the items sit without being read, the less likely you’ll be to look at them again.
Knowing how often to check for documents can help you put them in their place right away. The genius tip of handling things only once comes into play because you deal with everything that needs your attention in one setting. Then, when you need to look something up, you go to the appropriate application, folder or the binder in your BinderBag, and find the information that you need.