Is you’re like most of us you’re away from home more than you are at home. If you can only work at things while you’re at home, you might be setting yourself up for failure. In this post I’m going to tell you about my favorite filing system and show you some tools to put together.
Tools:
Note pad
Chargers
Pens
Stamps
Address Labels
File Folders
Note Cards
Business Cards
Sticky Notes
The first tool I used was the Fold N’ File by Thirty One Gifts. It’s a durable, pretty filer holder. It fits a number of file folders (even full), easily and the outside pockets allow you keep the items you need close by. I tucked in a pad, office supplies and even some stamps.
So how do you make this work for you? Grab 32 file folders. Label 1-31 with those numbers and they represent the days of the month. The 32nd folder is for items that will carry over until next month.
When an item comes into your home via mail, simply take a moment to open it, look at it and set a due date on it. I like to give things a few extra days leeway. For example, if a bill is due on the 15th, I like to slip it into the slot belonging to the 11th or so. That way, if you are really busy on a particular day, you won’t end up paying something late or missing an important deadline.
As the days of the month roll around, you can simply take the corresponding folder out and deal with the items inside. You have always prioritized them for yourself.
All this system takes is a few minutes a day to deal with what comes in and to deal with what’s assigned to that day.
You could also add a folder for reading materials such as catalogs or projects you are working on long term.
The whole unit fits into the Zip-Top Utility tote by Thirty One gifts. This tote easy fits the Fold N’ File AND has exterior pockets! This is a perfect place to tuck note cards, envelopes and even your charger. If your files aren’t that large, you could even tuck your laptop or iPad into this carrying case.
This whole system is portable, fairly light weight and allows you to work from anywhere. The patterns and colors on the Thirty One products make staying organized stylish and fun too! Use this in and out of the house and never miss an important deadline again!
Tell me what you think? Would this work for you? What would you carry in your portable filing system?
