At
Your Fingertips
A Household Filing System That Works for Youby
Denise Dale and Alexandra Bradley
The most common complaint, of
anyone
who is disorganized, is that they've lost the battle of the paper
war. They just can't seem to manage the paperwork needed to run
the home, nor can they keep track of all the papers, documents and
mail that floods into the average home on a daily basis. | |
I've seen quite a few clients who store their financial records,
in no logical order, in piles on tables and counters. One client
spent a week sifting through piles of mail (open and unopened)
and other papers looking for her income tax refund cheque before
finally calling me in to help her get a handle on her paper
problem. (We finally found it being used as a bookmark in one of
the cookbooks in the kitchen.)
Now when I run into someone with
paper
problems, I recommend At
Your Fingertips because it sets out all the criteria needed to
handle paper properly. The authors are records management experts
and in this little book they take you step-by-step through the
process of setting up a household filing system. Nothing is set
in stone, the authors suggest that you build on the information
given in the book so you can adapt it to work with your own
record keeping needs.
The book is not large, but there is a lot of information packed
into every page. It starts with a quick overview of the reasons
why we have problems managing paper and why we should be
concerned when our paper is not properly organized.
Chapter
1: What To Keep? The authors discuss what decisions need
to be made when sorting and filing paper and give tips for doing
so.
The basis of the system is
explained
in Chapter 2, Where To
Put
It? The system consists of four file categories: - Fingertip Files - Current
papers,
bills, receipts,
calendar, phone numbers etc.
- Household Files - Finances,
utilities, education,
employment and warranties.
- Permanent Files - Health
records,
vet records, birth
certificates, etc
- Reference Files - Books,
newspapers, clippings, info
you want to keep, crafts
Each category is fully explained
and
there are suggestions of
what to put where. The authors have even included things like
cash register receipts and take-out menus so you can easily see
how to customize your own system depending on the kinds of paper
you are managing.
Chapter
3- For How Long
and
Why? This is an excellent retention
guideline and will be a big help to those who are scared to throw
anything out. You'll find out what types of paper can be thrown
out immediately after use and what types of paper should be kept
and then you'll learn where to keep it. This is the key to
solving your paper management problems. Once you set up your
categories and understand the retention times for the various
paper types, you can set up a workable system and never have to
wonder again what to do with any piece of paper.
In
Chapter
4: Under Control,
you'll learn how to maintain your
new filing system. There are helpful hints for a yearly purge, as
well as tips on how to eliminate and curb the paper coming into
your home.
If you prefer to manage your files in a binder, rather than a
file box or cabinet, Appendix A and B give detailed instructions
on setting up your Fingertip and Household files using three ring
binders. Appendix C has a recommendation and contact information
for filing supplies put out by a professional archivist. The book
ends with personal acknowledgements from the authors and has a
page for your notes.
I suggest you read through the book first to get an overview of
the whole system. Once you determine what your paper management
needs are, you can start adapting the advice to create your own
customized system.
The procedures and advice offered is sensible and very detailed,
most organizing books don't cover paper management thoroughly
enough, I'm sure you'll find At Your Fingertips - A Household
Filing System to be THE definitive book
on paper
management.
Highly recommended! Copyright
© 2003-2004 Judy Brown
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