Making Coupons And Discounts Pay Off

Coupons, if done correctly, can be a great way to reduce your weekly grocery bill. Unfortunately, very few people manage to take full advantage of all those discounts offered in the Sunday paper. Why is it that, more often than not, your good intentions end up expiring before they can save you the first dime?

Spring Cleaning Your File Cabinet

Spring cleaning isn't just for home -- and it isn't just for spring, either! Your filing system needs an occasional deep-clean, just like your kitchen cabinets and closets. So let's get to it!

Organizing Electronic Files

How much of the information in your life exists in electronic format? Do you have a good system for keeping it organized? Without a method for sorting, naming, storing, and purging non-paper items -- it all becomes become virtual clutter. However, electronic filing isn't as complicated as it might seem. It's easy to set up an organizing system on your computer with just a few simple steps.

Your Emergency File

No one likes thinking about the bad things that can happen in life -- getting sick or hurt, having a loved one die, experiencing a theft, or finding that a disaster has destroyed everything you own. And while being prepared won't lessen the shock and grief of an emergency situation, it can certainly help you get your life back on track quicker and easier.

Protecting Your Important Documents

So you've created the perfect filing system, you can put your hands on any piece of paper in 30 seconds or less, and your desk is in order. But what happens if your house burns down tomorrow -- will all of your vital records go up in smoke? If you become sick or seriously injured, would your loved ones be able to find what they need to manage your affairs? You need to make sure your important paperwork is protected and easy to access in case of an emergency.

Reference Files

How's your filing system? Frustrating? Do you find yourself avoiding that stack on your desk because it's just too hard to remember where things go? Or because you know that you won't be able to find a specific document again once you've stashed it away? You may even have three or four files that contain the same information but are labeled differently -- what a mess!

Fingertip Files

While organizers love the sight of a clear desk, not all of your paper should be stuck away in a file drawer -- those items that are accessed regularly must be kept handy. But that doesn't mean that you have to suffer with a bunch of disorganized stacks, cluttering up all of your available work surfaces. You can have your cake and eat it too -- easily accessible but still "put away" with a fingertip file!

Setting Up Action Files

Some people say that you should only touch a piece of paper once -- I say, impossible! It might take several steps to complete a task, you may need to refer back to that document again and again, and that's okay. But the real trick is keeping track of everything throughout the process. You need a simple and effective paper-flow system that helps prevent misplaced items and lets you get everything done in a timely fashion. Fortunately, I have one to offer!

Reconciling Your Files And Your Computer

Anyone who talks about the paperless office becoming a reality any time soon is fooling himself -- paper isn't going anywhere! No matter how much you reduce your pulp consumption, computers will never completely eliminate the need for hard copies of certain documents. Technology has simply changed the way we interact with our paper -- and in some instances, its misuse has actually increased the amount of clutter on people's desks!