By Figen Genco, BA.
Paper management is one of the biggest problems people face today - when we are supposed to be “paperless”. Statistics indicate that there are nearly 650,000,000 pages printed from computers every day. That’s enough to fill a file drawer 180 miles long! And there are 178.9 billion fax pages sent/received per day; a 1500% increase in only the past 5 years! Where does all this paper go? It ends up on top of your desk, cabinets, windowsills, drawers, kitchen counters, dining room table. And when you will have guests, it goes into paper bags to be hidden under the sink, inside the dryers, and pantries!
Paper clutter is a big part of the clutter people suffer from. It is also one of most overwhelming kind of clutter because;
* Most people don’t know what to do with it.
* It keeps coming in through many means.
* Each piece needs reading, thus taking much longer to sort than other kind of clutter.
* Can be related to deep emotional scars- letters-photos-emails from certain times.
* You don’t get visual gratification as much as organizing a room.
Here are some EFT Set-Up phrases to get you started:
* Even though I feel like I am drowning under paper, I understand that many people suffer from the same problem…
* Even though, I don’t feel like dealing with it…
* Even though we haven’t been able to use our dining room table for so long, I am open to the possibility of forgiving myself for letting the piles of paper grow so high.
* Even though I still hold onto letters from my old boyfriends, and keep them in my bedroom closet, I am open to the possibility of considering letting go off them. Maybe this way, I might concentrate on my current relationship/ marriage instead of feeling stuck in the past.
* Even though I have no clue how to set up easy, practical filing systems, I am open to asking other people, reading some articles, and playing with creating something for myself. I realize that what I create doesn’t have to be perfect. I understand that I can always change things around. I choose to see that if a system doesn’t work, it means that the system and my habits do not match. It has nothing to do with me as a PERSON.
* Even though I am afraid to let go off some papers thinking I might need them, I see that I have no clue about what I have and where I have it, so I might as well let go off most that I don’t use until I make my piles manageable to create a system.
* Even though I want to hold onto the article clippings from newspapers and magazines, I accept the fact that almost everything is on the Internet now. Maybe I can let go off the control and enjoy my breathing space!
* Even though my magazines look really nice, and I can’t bring myself to discard them, I understand that there is no way for me to get back to a certain article unless I search for days. I realize that I like looking at certain pictures which triggers my creativity and the things with I want to do with my life. Maybe I can just cut those pictures and create a brain map.
What you can do physically
* Stop it before it gets to you! It is much harder to get rid of something once it is in your territory. Just because somebody sent you something, it doesn’t mean that you have to accept it.
* Make your own decisions. If it doesn’t contribute to your life, get rid of it.
* Set up a system that works for you. Books are written for general audiences, you can get ideas, but don’t expect to find the exact answer, adjust it to yourself. Organizing tools are designed to be “cute” for females and “important looking” for males - neither means it will address your specific needs. Create your own, or adjust the tool. Don’t try to adapt yourself to the tool.
* Use the technology to your advantage. People, who don’t have a working paper system, create the same chaos in their electronic files. Create categories for the files and emails you really need. The same rule applies - just because someone sent you something, you don’t have to keep it.
About the Author
Figen Genco, BA. EFT/Feng Shui/Organizing/EmoTrance