Dealing With One of the Most Challenging Forms of Clutter: Paper Clutter | Gretchen Rubin [Skip to content](#content) [ ![](https://staging.gretchenrubin.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/gretchenrubin-logo-768x344.png) ](https://staging.gretchenrubin.com) - April 16, 2019 - [Organization](https://staging.gretchenrubin.com/tag/organization/) # Dealing With One of the Most Challenging Forms of Clutter: Paper Clutter ![Paper clutter photo](https://staging.gretchenrubin.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/paper-clutter.jpg) Paperwork is one of the toughest forms of clutter to vanquish. Often, it’s much more anxiety-provoking and draining than going through a clothes closet or a desk drawer. **To decide what to keep and what to toss, ask:** - Do you actually need this piece of paper or receipt? What *specific use* does it serve? - Have you ever used it? If you’ve never referred to a category of paperwork, apparently you don’t need it. - Will it quickly become dated—like travel or summer-camp information? - Does the internet mean that it’s no longer necessary? For instance, the instruction manuals for most appliances are now online. - What’s the consequence of not having it if you do need it? - Was it once necessary but is now related to a part of your life that’s over? This can be hard to recognize. Do you need that sheet of home phone numbers for the members of a team that you left two years ago? - Could you scan it, so that you have a copy if you need it? - At work or at home, does someone else have a copy of this information? - Look in your paper-organizing gizmos. When I look at people’s work spaces, I notice that they often have file stands, wall-mounted paper organizers, stacked shelves and in-boxes…all full of old papers that no one ever looks at. Unless you’re actively moving papers in and out, empty out those units, and get rid of the units altogether! They’re often just clutter magnets. - Have you verified your assumptions? For instance, when you took your current position, your co-worker told you, “I always keep these receipts,” so you assumed that you need to keep them, too. But maybe you don’t. Some additional conversations… Whenever we clear cutter, it’s useful to ask, “**If I had to replace something I’ve tossed or given away, how hard would it be**?” This question can help with papers. If you shred a bank statement but end up needing it, you can get the statement online or call your bank. If you toss your diary from high school, you can’t get it back. So think harder about the diary than the bank statement. Beware of *binders*! For some reason, I’ve noticed that many people have an urge to put papers in binders. But do you really need those papers *at all*? **One of the biggest wastes of time is doing something well that didn’t need to be done *at all*.** Along the same lines, I got an email from a teacher who complained about how much time she’d spent shredding old lessons plans and student essays. Why do those papers need to be shredded *at all*? I talked to a guy who was planning on putting all his papers in chronological order in binders (binders!), then realized that most of the paperwork was related to pet insurance, and he could access his account online. He didn’t need to save those papers *at all*. Some people worry about **regret**—that they’ll sort through the papers, get rid of a lot of it, then wish they’d kept some of it. In my observation, this is rarely a problem. However, if it’s a real stumbling block for you, create a holding box. Put papers in that box for six months—or even a year, if you’re really worried—and see if you ever need to retrieve anything from that box. If you don’t, get rid of the box—and importantly, don’t re-open it first! Or you’ll re-ignite the whole problem of uncertainty. **We want to get organized, but not too organized.** Don’t make files so specific that you can’t find anything later, or so that you spend all your time labeling files. I’ve come up with a system that works really well for me. I have a folder for every month of the year, and any information related to that month goes into that file, whether it’s a party invitation, agenda for speaking at a conference, information about a school event for my daughter, or notes for one of [the live shows that Elizabeth and I are planning](http://www.staging.gretchenrubin.com/events). That makes it easy to know exactly where to find timely information, no matter what part of my life it relates to, and easy to see when paperwork is no longer necessary. Bonus: To make those files more fun to maintain, years ago, I bought bright, well-designed folders and had my then-little daughter Eleanor write the days of the month on them. It’s still fun to see her childish handwriting when I grab a folder. This kind of paper clutter is difficult, but so rewarding! Think of how great you’ll feel when you get that pile of files off the floor, or clean out that curled up, yellow papers. **It’s tremendously free and energizing to clear out that stuff.** #### YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE ![](https://staging.gretchenrubin.com/wp-content/uploads/ac_assets/post_carousel//placeholder.jpg) [Gretchen Rubin's Recommendations: Making Organizing Simpler](https://staging.gretchenrubin.com/articles/gretchen-rubins-recommendations-make-organizing-simpler/) ![](https://staging.gretchenrubin.com/wp-content/uploads/ac_assets/post_carousel//placeholder.jpg) [Gretchen Rubin's Recommendations: Making Life Easier](https://staging.gretchenrubin.com/articles/gretchen-rubin-guide-make-life-easier/) ![](https://staging.gretchenrubin.com/wp-content/uploads/ac_assets/post_carousel//placeholder.jpg) [Gretchen Rubin's Recommendations: Saving Time and Improving Focus](https://staging.gretchenrubin.com/articles/gretchen-rubin-save-time-improve-focus/) #### DISCOVER MORE # Like what you see? Explore more about this topic. - [Organization](https://staging.gretchenrubin.com/secondary_tag/organization/), [Organization hub](https://staging.gretchenrubin.com/secondary_tag/organization-hub/), [Outer Order Inner Calm](https://staging.gretchenrubin.com/secondary_tag/outer-order-inner-calm/) # Interested in happiness, habits, and human nature? From renowned happiness expert and *New York Times* bestselling author Gretchen Rubin, the “Five Things Making Me Happy” newsletter is one of today’s most popular newsletters. You’ll get a weekly round-up of what’s making Gretchen happy, as well as practical tips, research, and resources about how we can make our lives happier, healthier, more productive, and more creative. Email Submit Manage Cookie Consent To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions. Functional Functional Always active The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network. Preferences Preferences The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user. Statistics Statistics The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you. Marketing Marketing The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes. - [Manage options](#) - [Manage services](#) - [Manage {vendor\_count} vendors](#) - [Read more about these purposes](https://cookiedatabase.org/tcf/purposes/) Accept Deny View preferences Save preferences [View preferences](#) - [{title}](#) - [{title}](#) - [{title}](#) Manage consent # Subscribe to Gretchen’s newsletter. Every Friday, Gretchen Rubin shares 5 things that are making her happier, asks readers and listeners questions, and includes exclusive updates and behind-the-scenes material. Email Submit ; ![](https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=1375714196636303&ev=PageView&noscript=1&cd%5Bpost_category%5D=Articles&cd%5Bpage_title%5D=Dealing+With+One+of+the+Most+Challenging+Forms+of+Clutter%3A+Paper+Clutter&cd%5Bpost_type%5D=post&cd%5Bpost_id%5D=50952&cd%5Bplugin%5D=PixelYourSite&cd%5Buser_role%5D=guest&cd%5Bevent_url%5D=staging.gretchenrubin.com%2Farticles%2Fdealing-with-one-of-the-most-challenging-forms-of-clutter-paper-clutter%2F) [x](# "Close optin form")Subscribe to Gretchen's newsletter Every Friday, Gretchen Rubin shares 5 things that are making her happier, asks readers and listeners questions, and includes exclusive updates and behind-the-scenes material. We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time. Invalid email address Thanks for subscribing! [x](# "Close optin form") ![Blue and yellow pens on blue background](https://staging.gretchenrubin.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/cropped-cropped-DSC5980-scaled-e1663786433795.jpg) Join more than One Million Subscribers # Get happiness delivered to your inbox. From renowned happiness expert and *New York Times* bestselling author Gretchen Rubin, the “Five Things Making Me Happy” newsletter is one of today’s most popular newsletters. You’ll get a weekly round-up of what’s making Gretchen happy, as well as practical tips, research, and resources about how we can make our lives happier, healthier, more productive, and more creative. [Privacy Policy]() Invalid email address Onward! Thank you for subscribing.