What is the main message of The Paper Solution?

The main message of The Paper Solution is to declutter and organize your life by effectively managing your paperwork.

Who is the author of The Paper Solution?

The author of The Paper Solution is Lisa Woodruff.

Productivity

The Paper Solution Book Summary - The Paper Solution Book explained in key points

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The Paper Solution summary

Name: The Paper Solution
Rating: 4.5 (81 reviews)
Author: Lisa Woodruff

Lisa Woodruff

What to Shred, What to Save, and How to Stop It From Taking Over Your Life

4.5 (81 ratings)

22 mins

Brief summary

"The Paper Solution" by Lisa Woodruff is a practical guide on how to organize and declutter your home and office space using a simple and customizable system. It helps you create a functional and efficient space that supports your goals and priorities.

Topics

Self-Help

Table of Contents

The Paper Solution
Summary of 7 key ideas

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Key idea 1 of 7

What’s in it for me? Learn to manage your paper clutter efficiently and effectively.

Modern life is full of paper: junk mail, bills, reminder cards, letters from friends, Post-its, grocery lists, invitations, and more. Too often, that paper comes in faster than we can process it, leading to messy stacks of it stationed around the house.

In these blinks, you’ll learn how to regain control of your paper. The author draws upon her years of experience as a mother and organizer to offer up ways to get rid of clutter and develop new methods for handling your papers. You’ll learn the optimal way to sort and categorize them, as well as strategies to set up systems that work for you.

In these blinks, you’ll learn

what the Big Purge is;
why filing cabinets need to be left in the past; and
how to fill your Sunday Basket.

Paper clutter can be costly, and it limits your freedom.

Taking back control of the clutter in your life might seem impossible – but there is a way out. The first step to solving your clutter is admitting you have a problem. More specifically, you have to understand exactly what your clutter problem is costing you.

Some of these issues are obvious. For example, if you have unorganized piles of paper everywhere, tracking down important bills is a headache. But clutter takes an emotional toll, too. Ultimately, controlling your clutter won’t just make for a cleaner home and more accessible files – it’ll also have a positive impact on your well-being.

The key message here is: Paper clutter can be costly, and it limits your freedom.

What are the consequences of clutter? First and foremost, there’s a real financial cost to having disorganized papers. For instance, have you ever misplaced a refund check or been unable to return something because you lost the receipt? If your answer was “yes,” you’re not alone. In 2014, $1 billion in gift cards went unclaimed; while there aren’t exact numbers available, it’s a good bet many of those cards were lost.

Clutter also leads to late fees. US credit card companies collected an astounding $12 billion in late-payment penalty fees in 2016. What’s more, research shows that about a quarter of people who pay late have the cash but simply can’t find the bill. Although these costs aren’t always major, they do add up.

There are also physical costs to clutter. Having piles of paper all over your home means less space for living. It’s not uncommon for people to lose a table, or even a room, to papers. And taken to the extreme, hoarding – compulsively collecting items, even when they’re not of any use – can affect your ability to maintain a clean and safe home.

But there are other drawbacks that aren’t as immediately obvious. For example, the average American wastes 55 minutes a day looking for misplaced items. In the long run, that amounts to hundreds of lost hours. We all know that time is valuable; every minute spent searching through piles of clutter and filling out new documents to replace the mislaid ones is time that’s gone forever.

And this wasted time comes at an emotional cost, too. How did you feel the last time you lost something? Not great, right? Trying to keep track of all the paper in your life is emotionally draining, and it becomes a source of stress and anxiety when you fail at it. In fact, research has revealed a direct link between household clutter and increased levels of the stress hormone cortisol. It’s safe to say that a clean, organized space boosts your mood in more ways than one.

Use the Big Purge to figure out which papers you really need to keep.

Now that you understand what clutter costs, it’s time to start doing something about it. The first step to managing your paper is deceptively simple: get rid of the trash, as well as stuff you clearly don’t need. This Big Purge should get rid of around 85 percent of your current paper stash.

It may feel overwhelming, and that’s OK! People often keep papers because they mean something to them. When it comes time to throw them away, it’s normal to feel emotions like stress or regret. But think of what your papers cost you, and take confidence in the fact that freedom awaits you on the other side of the purge.

Put all your time-sensitive papers in one place, and go through them every Sunday.

Once you’ve done the Big Purge, the next step is figuring out what to do with the papers that remain. These should all be time-sensitive documents – bills that need to be paid, invitations to upcoming parties, a school report. You get the idea.

The way to handle these papers is with a Sunday Basket. The idea is simple but powerful – the Sunday Basket is the one and only place for incoming papers that need to be managed. It’ll take a while for this system to become a part of your regular routine, but once you master it, it’ll free up time and grant you peace of mind.

To make your Sunday Basket a habit, customize it to meet your needs.

The Sunday Basket is a powerful concept, but don’t worry – it’s not one-size-fits-all. Every household is different, and so every household’s paper needs will be different as well.

The Sunday Basket is a broad system that allows for tweaks and adjustments as needed, right down to the name. The author chose Sunday as the default because that’s when many of us have the most free time. But if Tuesday nights work better for you, then guess what? You have a Tuesday Basket now. The important thing is to develop a routine that works for you and fits your needs, so you can get through your papers in a timely and organized manner.

Use binders, not filing cabinets, as your long-term paper storage solution.

You may have noticed that filing cabinets haven’t entered the discussion thus far. And that’s with good reason. They don’t really help you organize your papers – in fact, they hold you back.

While filing cabinets did have their moment, they’re no longer a good fit for our modern storage needs. It’s better to go with binders, which are portable, easier to store and organize, and more efficient. You’ll cut down on your physical footprint and still have plenty of storage capacity to manage your papers and take control of your space.

Store critical legal and financial documents in a regular binder, but consider a safe for the truly priceless stuff.

Imagine you’ve completed the Big Purge and set up your Sunday Basket and storage binders. You’ve eliminated 85 percent of the paper piles that used to be scattered around your house. All that’s left are a few stacks of legal papers – maybe tax documents related to your business – that need to be stored but don’t fit in a two-inch binder. What are you supposed to do with those?

The answer might come as a surprise: in this instance, it’s OK to archive papers! That said, there are very specific situations in which you should do this – and specific ways to store the papers without starting down the road to clutter again.

Be deliberate about what you scan and save, and make sure to have a backup.

No discussion about managing paper clutter is complete without a look at your digital options. After all, the rise of digitization is one of the main reasons why the modern approach to paper is different than in past years.

But just as with paper, digital information also has to be carefully maintained. Digital clutter is a thing, too – if you don’t know where your documents are, then you’re no better off than before. You need to know when and how to digitize information so that it’s accessible and organized.

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What is The Paper Solution about?

The Paper Solution: What to Shred, What to Save, and How to Stop It From Taking Over Your Life (2020) is a guide to managing the paper clutter that plagues so many people. It offers a new way to purge your trash, evaluate your documents, and develop systems to process papers as they come in – allowing you to reclaim your space and freedom.

The Paper Solution Review

The Paper Solution (2021) by Lisa Woodruff presents a practical approach to organizing paper clutter and creating a more efficient system. Here's why this book is worth reading:

With simple and actionable strategies, it empowers readers to conquer their paper piles and establish a streamlined organizational system.
By sharing real-life experiences and relatable anecdotes, the book offers a wealth of knowledge that's both informative and engaging.
Its emphasis on sustainability and environmental awareness sets it apart from traditional organizational guides, making it a compelling and relevant read.

Who should read The Paper Solution?

People trying to get organized
Parents in busy households
Folks with papers currently piled high on their table

About the Author

Lisa Woodruff started Organize365 at her kitchen table in 2012; today, it’s the go-to brand for paper organization. With podcasts, products, certifications, and workshops on organization, the brand attracts people from across the US who are seeking tools to tame the out-of-control paper in their lives. Woodruff lives in West Chester, Ohio, with her family.

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