Dear Kathi,

I have a small home office and I don’t know what to do with all of my papers. I bring work projects home periodically and then my personal correspondence and bills get lost. Do you have any recommendations?

Kyle, Solana Beach

Kyle,

When you mix business with personal paperwork, items will invariably get lost. Create an area in your office for large work projects. This can be as simple as a basket where your project is stored when you are done for the day. For multiple work projects, use a file drawer or free-standing file unit to hold resources and information separately for each project. When a project is just getting started, you can keep it in your current projects vertical file described in the last paragraph.

Create a filing system for all work projects, personal bills and correspondence.

There is a super file system that I recommend to all of my clients. It is called Freedom Filer. This system is self-purging and rotates your files so that you have paper archives for two years and tax archives for ten. It makes filing a breeze and also teaches you what to keep and what to throw away. It is expandable and works well for personal file systems, home-based businesses and corporations. You can learn more about this filing system at www.freedomfiler.com.

For papers aren’t yet ready to file and need attention, designate a holding area. Your desktop is a logical space because they will remind you to work on them when you see them every day. Stack these folders vertically and label them Current Projects, Waiting for Response, Bills to Pay, Calls to Make etc. There are many labeling possibilities for your folders. Use whichever label titles work best for you and work on these files a few minutes every day. Implementing these practices will keep you free and clear of the black hole syndrome.

Dear Kathi,

My family just purchased a new RV and we love to go camping. Every time we want to go somewhere, we invariably forget things. With multiple people packing, important items often get left behind. Without making one person responsible for everything, how can we manage to be provisioned? PS After we put all this stuff in the RV, how do we keep it from falling around when we drive?

Ren, Cardiff

Ren,

You can solve your provisioning challenge by creating a list. This list will itemize the food that you wish to have onboard for each trip. It will probably contain staples like olive oil, spaghetti noodles and sauce, butter, potatoes etc.

It is best to camp once as you create your master list. Once you analyze this list away from home, it will become clear what you need to include. After this, you are ready to type and print several copies to keep in your RV. Make sure to leave a few blank lines.

When you are underway, keep your master list visible. A spot on the refrigerator keeps it front and center. As you consume food that needs to be replenished, add a checkmark beside the item. Family members can also add forgotten snacks to this list.

If your RV is not going into a storage facility, DO NOT MOVE this list until you are ready to buy new provisions. Keep your list on the fridge for safekeeping. If your RV does go into storage, place this list in a file at home until the day you shop. It’s a great idea to restock as soon as you return so that you can leave on a whim if the spare time presents itself.
For bedding and towels, keep a collapsible hamper on board where you can toss soiled items. Don’t mix your clothes into this basket, they should have their own dirty clothes bag. Launder the bedding hamper items separately and take them immediately back to your RV. You don’t have to worry with unpacking at this point. A family member can make the bed and stow the towels once you are underway on your next adventure.

Speaking of stowing, it is best to place loose items in plastic boxes with lids that fit snugly inside each cabinet. When a door jars open because you take a bump or curve, the worst that will happen is the items within each bin will become jumbled. Bins also make it easy to clean the inside of your cabinets. There are so many plastics available that you should easily find a bin to fit within each space.

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Kathi is a professional organizer, image consultant and event planner based in San Diego California.

Please submit your questions to: advice@addspacetoyourlife.com
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San Diego Professional Organizer