Do you read this title and scoff at it because you are surrounded by an immaculate workspace? Do you cringe because the idea of organizing your office is more scary than a trip to the dentist’s office? Do you laugh because you haven’t organized your office since 1972, and your filing system consists of mountains of papers that only YOU know how to find?

Wherever you fall on the organization scale, I think anyone could benefit from a seminar like this. Today, I did just that as I listened to the founder of ilove2organize, Donna Hrezo, speak at the conference on organizing our lives, offices and homes. Here is what I learned…

1. Filing systems should be all about easy retrieval, not about putting things out of sight.
2. Straight line tabs in alphabetical order within a filing cabinet are easier to process than staggered tabs.
3. Instead of color coded files, use color coded tabs to save money and label levels of priority.
4. Keep your filing system 1/4 empty to allow space and easy filing.
5. Plan to purge papers once a month. Ask yourself, “What is the worth thing that could happen if I don’t have this paper?”
6. Tax and legal documents should be filed in a different place than things that are used on a daily basis.
7. Reference material in two categories: active and archive. Keep archives separate from the active materials for quick references to the important things.

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