You’ve Got Maaaiiil! Part I
Cards, letters, flyers, bills, announcements, invitations, bills, advertising, notices, bills, and more bills! If your mounting pile of mail overwhelms you, remember that you can take control and tame the “paper tiger.”
First, toss that junk mail
Junk mail is any mail, flyers, catalogs, emails, etc that you didn’t ask for and that includes solicitations from charities. You don’t have to keep this stuff. You don’t even have to look at it. Think of it as an invader trying to part you from your cash. Some direct mail advertising even has your name printed on it. You can shred the stuff with your name on it if you like but toss everything else right into the recycling bin before it even comes into the house. If you don’t have a recycling or “blue” bin, you can buy one from your local waste depot for a nominal fee.
Stop junk mail and spam at the source:
stick a “no flyers” or “no junk mail” sign, available from most hardware stores, on your mailbox
ask the post office to add your name to a “Do not mail” list
call companies that repeatedly send you junk mail or catalogs and demand to be taken off their mailing lists
cancel subscriptions for print newspapers and magazines that you don’t have time for
unsubscribe from online newspapers, magazines, and newsletters that you don’t have time for
be wary of giving away your personal information such as your home or email address in exchange for something free like in a raffle or contest
Open your real mail
Now that you’ve tossed the junk, your pile of mail will be smaller. Whatever is left over should be real mail addressed to you.
Sometimes we’re afraid to open our mail in case it brings bad news. Our imagination kicks into high gear and we fear the worst. Don’t leave this mail unopened. It’s usually not as scary as you think. Take action and take control.
Open the envelope and remove the contents. It doesn’t matter whether you open the short end or the long end. A paper knife can be useful but your fingers work just as well.
If your envelope contains many separate pieces such as legal documents, you might use the envelope to keep them together. If it’s a bill like the CAA annual membership dues bill shown in the photo, toss the outside window envelope into your paper recycling bin with your flyers and newspapers. You don’t have to remove the plastic window. If the outside envelope has your name and address, you can shred it if you like.
If your envelope contains advertising along with your bill, look over it quickly to see if it is of interest to you. If not, recycle it. Again, if the sender has personalized it with your name you can shred it if you like.
Along with the bill came a pre-addressed return envelope. Unless you pay your bills by cheque, you can recycle this too. Resist the urge to save these extra pieces of paper to write notes, lists, or phone numbers.
The bill is all you need to keep. Your pile of mail is now so much smaller than when you started.
To-be-paid bills
If you’re not paying the bill right away, keep the bill (or the bill and return envelope) with the important information folded out so you can see it. Use a highlighter if necessary to highlight the due date and amount due. Put a reminder of the due date in your calendar if that helps. Don’t put it back in the original outside envelope with the due date written on the front. This is more unnecessary work and the envelope adds bulk.
Keep to-be-paid bills in a single place in chronological order of due date. If you need to see the bills as a reminder to pay them, a paper napkin holder from the dollar store makes a good mini file rack to keep on your desk or kitchen counter. If you have a filing cabinet or tote, you can designate a folder to keep these bills. Depending on how many bills you have and reminders you need, a “tickler” file is also useful.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tickler_file
Pay the bill
Letter-size bills are folded into thirds and the lower third is printed with the essential information, how much is due and when it is due, usually with a perforation for easy tearing. If you are paying by cheque, tear or cut this lower portion to include in your return envelope. Write the cheque number and date information on both this part as well as the remaining portion of your bill.
If you pay online, mark the bill “paid” along with the date. If you pay your bills in person at the bank, the bank will stamp your bill with the date paid. Paying all your bills at once, whether by mail, online, or at the bank, saves you time.
File the bill
Once you’ve paid the bill, file it in a folder labelled with the category, such as Phone or Hydro, for example. A year’s worth of bills will fill that folder.
Next week: Filing, archiving, shredding, and going paperless