Not sure how to decide which office papers to keep and which to discard? Here's a simple, sure-fire way to dramatically decrease the deliberation time:
- If you aren't sure about the item, stack it on your desk.
- Revisit the stack one to three years later.
5 comments:
With the sad state of the job market I'd say closer to one year on your spectrum than three, but sound advice nonetheless.
I always filed papers in a 10 ream paper box and dated it. If I did not open it in 6 months, I set it aside. If I did not open it in 2 years, I tossed it in the trash, unless it was subject to some sort of retention procedure.
Good idea, anonymous. The trick is to not open the lid if it's a 2yr old box. It's the second guessing that always gets me.
I cleaned off my desk this week and wrote out my checks on it for the first time in ages. The papers at the very bottom were from 2008. Kind of scary.
L.
Congratulations, L! I finally gave up on the idea of a desk at home, because it never was more than another place to put piles of paper. Of course, I have the luxury of a desk at work where I can pay bills and such.
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