If you haven't already read about my Paper Review process, here's all the good detail on what's involved.
Spoiler: Very little is involved, honestly, but the impact is monumental!
You tame the paper and the flow of tasks that come into your life each week, give them attention and determine what gets priority for the upcoming week and then....schedule it!
Getting started requires few supplies and almost no cost. I've taken a moment to show you what it looks like in action though for me.
If you look at the picture here, you can see my basket ready for review.
This particular week, there wasn't a lot that needed review but you can see that I put more than paper in there.
Some weeks, it holds such a variety of stuff that I need to figure out what to do with:
unprocessed mail,
birthday cards for an upcoming party,
a light bulb that needs ordered,
taxes in process
a book that I want to start reading, expense receipts for my business,
the dog's vet records that need filed and sent to the boarding facility,
sticky notes that I wrote on during the week,
it goes on and on.
All your things will go in the basket and will no longer be all over the house, countertops, cars or bags.
That may be my most favorite part...less clutter everywhere else. If it requires your attention, it goes into the basket!
Supplies
Any basket will do - mine is an old gym locker basket. I like that I can see through it. It's also very durable. Perhaps you will prefer something different.
These are the folders (slash pocket folders) that I use so that I can see what is in them but not lose anything out the bottom of them.
I label them with a post it note which allows me to swap them in and out easily without writing all over my folders.
It really doesn't need to be fancy but it does need to work for you.
Make the process meaningful to you.
Here are a few things I have done to make the review meaningful to me:
Every few weeks, I do a deep dive into my basket and pull things up to put on my calendar that I haven't gotten around to doing. It still got my attention and I chose to put it off until I was ready. Some seasons are busier than others so I allow myself to give something attention when it makes sense to.
I made a folder just for me ❤ and I put things that I want to remember and prioritize like a class that I'd like to take or note about a pair of shoes that I want to look up when I'm shopping for myself.
My husband has a folder and during the year when he mentions something he'd like to have, I write it down and store it in his folder. When I need some good gift ideas, I take a look inside his folder.
I have a folder labeled 'Planning' and inside of it, I put ideas as they come up for upcoming vacations or family activities and while that may not get scheduled in the next week, I have it when it is the time to do scheduling.
I hope you found some of this helpful. Look for more information coming up on how I use this process to help me in my planning process.
Have you tried the paper review or have a version of it that you use?
Comment and tell me about it or email me a picture!
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