Paperwork

Usually when I come home, there would always be a new stack of envelopes waiting for me to open.
Boy, it's not anticipated; not only is it a hassle to rip them out, but also the archiving or tasks that needs to be done.

To clear the chunk(on top of accumulating envelopes for the past weeks!), I learned to separate them into roughly 3 piles (divide & conquer):

1. Trash (with bin & shredder)
   
2. Archival (with Punch holder, page protectors & filing pigeon hole)
   
3. Action/Tasks (via phone, PC, or manual-pen&paper, with time observation)
   

Guidelines to sort stuff to the piles:

1. Trash: envelopes, advertisements that come with bills, fliers for events you're not interested in, coupons for products you don't use or stores you don't frequent, duplicates, old or outdated materials, numbers or notes you no longer need, manuals, receipts, or warranties from products you no longer own, etc.
2. Archival: Group like with like i.e. receipts and records associated with taxes, warranties and owners manuals, significant correspondence, appraisals, cv or resume, product information, account information, financial records, insurance policies, benefit information, dental, health, and immunization records, things associated with particular hobby, etc.
3. Action/Tasks: names, numbers, and addresses to input; accounts to reconcile; calls to make; correspondence (rsvps, thank you notes, job applications, birthday cards, recommentations, invitations) to write; numbers to check; questions to ask; decisions to make; products to register; policies to review; things to return or exchange; taxes or claims to file; new files to make, etc. Just remember to keep this list of items low, i.e 12!