There are a number of ways to organize documents, receipts and papers in an easy way. I have listed my favorite ways below:
1) Receipts.
Toy Storage Drawers
I hate having to store receipts. The best way to deal with receipts is to use cash for as many purchases as possible. I just cannot see how anyone can think that using a debit card and credit card makes your life any easier. It just makes it harder.
If you go to the coffee shop and pay for a coffee with your debit card or credit card, now you have to hold onto that receipt to record it in your check book or wait until it shows up on your next credit card bill.
I do not want to hold onto a bunch of receipts, they are so maddening. If you buy lunch for , same thing. You are buying coffee and lunch to save yourself the work of making it yourself. You are doing something nice for yourself, not making coffee or a lunch and making it harder on yourself by having to hold onto the receipt.
Why not make your life even easier by paying for all these little things with cash? You can eliminate lots of paper, you do not need to organize documents like that and you avoid record keeping by just going to cash.
So, if you are buying most things with cash, will you have any receipts at all? Yes, just as little as possible. The easiest way to organize documents is to put your receipts that you think you might return in a file labeled, To File. If you buy something with a debit card tied to your checking account, you would put the receipt in that file. If you buy something with a credit card, you would put the receipt in that credit card file.
Do you see how much more work this is? If you buy everything with cash, then all the receipts are in one file. This TO FILE, file is gone through once a month or so. You then file what should be filed and to toss out what is not needed. If you need to return the item, you can easily find the receipt.
Even buying more expensive items is better with cash. When I go clothes shopping for myself or with my kids I use cash. I have an idea what is needed. Then I go shopping with the cash I have available at that time. You ought to have a pretty good idea how much things are going to cost and base your shopping on that. In August your kids will need new clothes for school. So you will need hundreds of dollars in cash when you go out for that. You know it is coming, so why not be prepared?
2) Other papers and documents.
The papers and documents you do need to keep should be stored in manila files in a file cabinet. There is no other method that works as well to organize documents. It is cheap and takes up little space. Of course, cardboard boxes are more inexpensive than a file cabinet but if you really need to hang onto the papers for whatever reason you ought to have a metal or wood file cabinet.
Once you are out on your own in the world you will need at least a 2 drawer file cabinet. After awhile, you may find it necessary to have a 4 drawer file cabinet if you are into collecting information. If you keep your life very simple or are really into computerized everything you may be able to get by with only a 2 drawer file cabinet. Now I know a lot of people do not do this. They keep their papers in binders and in desk drawers, but that is not really a good method. Offices around the world use the file cabinet method because it is the best method.
3) Reference papers and school papers.
Reference papers for a similar subject should go into a 3 ring binder. Then you can carry all these papers together. Three ring binders work really well for any type of schooling that you are into. You just keep it all together neatly. Then when the class is done you have all the papers in order and you can keep the binder and papers together. You may need to keep them forever, a few years until you no longer need the information or you may be able to toss out the papers right away and reuse the binder. Throwing out papers is still the easiest way to organize documents.
These methods are a fairly easy way to organize documents, receipts and papers.