Open Your Mail!

OK. I get it. You come home from errands or work, and you are dead tired. You may have a bag of groceries in your arms and maybe a child in tow. Your dog wants a walk. You plop the mail down on the table or counter “just for now”. You’ll get to it later. Most of it is just junk anyways.

The mail stack grows, and you consider just tossing it sight unseen.

This is not a good idea.

What important items might be lurking in your mail:

·        Tax forms needed for filing your taxes

Right now, tax documents are arriving through the mail. Most of them are marked on the outside of the envelope “Important tax information”. These need to be gathered and put in one spot for when you are ready to tackle that unpleasant task. It’s frustrating to finally make yourself sit down and work on taxes only to find you are missing an important 1099.

·        A traffic fine that you got for running that red light

One of my clients got caught on camera running a red light in another state. She was mailed information on how to deal with the fine. She did not open that mail and ignored it. Later she wanted to go on a trip and get a rental car. At that point she discovered that her driver’s license was revoked. Whoops!

·        Your new tax decal or car title

I recently had to get a car title for my husband’s car. I was able to do all the paperwork rather easily at the DMV but they told me to watch for the title that would be mailed in a few weeks.

Some people pay for their new car decals by mail and in that case the decal will be mailed to them after the paperwork is processed. It is important to open that mail and get that decal on your car if you don’t want to get pulled over.

·        A change in your insurance policy, utility statements or credit card

If you have chosen to get paper statements, then any changes will be on that statement. My phone company reliably ups my fees about every six months and usually needs a phone call to pull them back in line.

·        Jury summons

Our local paper, the Atlanta Journal Constitution, had an interesting column last February 2. The headline was “Ga. Judge asks jury duty no-shows: Why?”.  The judge had deputies round up two dozen people to explain why they had failed to show up for jury duty. Last fall 200 people were sent summons for jury duty and only 84 appeared. Many said that they didn’t open or receive the mail. What they were finding was that so much junk mail comes now, and most people do their stuff electronically, so they don’t pay much attention to the mail. But until the legislature changes, the way people are summoned is by mail.

·        A credit card offer with codes that someone else might grab and use

I hate these and I am not sure if someone else could actually use this information but when they come in the mail with my name and contact information and a special code or square, I feel I must shred them.

·        An invitation

Wedding invitations, graduation invites, and some party invitations still come by mail. You may have had an email telling you to save the date, but this actual mailed invitation has more information and usually an RSVP request.

·        A handwritten note or card from a friend or family member.

Who wants to miss that? When someone has taken time to write you a personal note and mail it, that’s special. And that birthday card might even have a gift card inside. (see picture of grandson with his Halloween card)

Conclusion:

Again, I get it that you are exhausted at the end of the day and the last thing you want to do is go through a stack of mail. So, put it in a basket or container and schedule a time at least once a week to go through it. Most of it will hit the recycle bin, a few items will go into the shred pile, but some of the pieces will require action and a few may bring a smile to your face.

Just open your mail! It’s not that hard.

If you want some assistance on your paper project or any other organizational project, join Diane Quintina and me for one of our support groups.  We can help you with next steps to complete your project.

Jonda S. Beattie, Professional Organizer owner of Time Space Organization, and co-owner of Release, Repurpose, Reorganize. She is based in the Metro-Atlanta area. As presenter, award-winning author, as well as a retired special education teacher she uses her listening skills, problem solving skills, knowledge of different learning techniques, ADHD specialty, and paper management skills to help clients tackle the toughest organizational issues. Jonda does hands on organizing and virtual organizing. For more of Jonda’s tips connect with her on Facebook.