What is the ultimate fail-safe product that will keep all your papers from conspiring into those endless piles?

Is there a magical secret process to keeping your desktop clear, preventing the mail from littering your kitchen counter, or remembering where you placed those season hockey tickets?

The secret to organizing is not a secret at all. It is truly about finding a solution that is customized to each individual’s needs. Although the dilemmas may be the same, the solutions may be as different as each person.

Out of Chaos wanted to share with you success stories from some of our readers.

Jennifer’s secret in using binders:
“A friend of mine suggested I keep all my invoices in a binder instead of file folders – filing somehow has a way of stacking up and taking awhile to get to it. The binder made it so much easier, as I can sit and watch T.V. while I match and staple my receipts onto my statements. I can also take the binder with me if I’m sitting at the beach.

So, now I’ve decided to make a binder for all the menu flyers I receive. I have a one plastic pocket with tab for each category; pizza, Thai, Indian, sushi, etc. I can then find them easier instead of sifting through my junk drawer to find a particular menu. Works like a charm. My junk drawer now only contains junk, not brochures as well.”

Darren’s secret to controlling email chaos:
“I am in the habit of keeping my e-mail’s Inbox, Sent Items and Deleted Items as free of clutter as possible.

I delete all of the repetitious e-mail messages that form part of an e-mail chain, only keeping the most recent or most relevant message.

Then, at the end of each day, I check my Sent box, file the few important items and delete the rest. I then empty my Deleted Mail box before shutting down.

My e-mail certainly seems a lot less overwhelming this way.”

If you have a solution to an organizing dilemma that works for you, share it with us at info@outofchaos.ca.