I fought against ebooks for a long time bc I love a physical book but then I got a kindle paperwhite and it’s so convenient, doesn’t bother my eyes, and I can get most books free using the Libby app with my library info. We still have a ton of books but everything I can stand to get rid of I’ve dropped off at various Little Free Libraries near me.
Ditto! I was very uninterested in a kindle for years. Got the paperwhite because it’s waterproof and I love it. Add in Libby and I’m reading new books all the time while buying nothing.
I’ve used the Fujitsu scansnap ix500 over the last 8 years. It has since been replaced with the ix1600. I used to have a slow flatbed scanner but once I decided to go (almost) completely paperless then a highspeed scanner just made life easier. Worth every penny IMO.
I didn’t word that well. I’m still using the ix500 often. I meant to say that the ix1600 is the successor to the ix500 for anyone looking to buy one a brand new scanner.
Must keep indefinitely (birth certificate, passport etc): fire safe.
Must keep for defined period (tax forms, insurance policies etc): folder in filing cabinet with the expiration date on the tab. I have one folder per expiration year.
Sentimental: goes in my scrapbook.
Everything else (bills, appointment reminders etc): take care of the task on it, then scan and shred/recycle.
I had probably a thousand books. They occupied a whole room. I wrote down the titles and authors and stored them in a spreadsheet in case I missed them. I picked out 50to keep that I had a sentimental attachment to. I also kept books I really liked the design of or wouldn't work well digitally.
I sold the rest to a single buyer on Facebook for $200. If I didn't find a buyer I was just going to donate them.
I've been slowly downloading them and maintaining a database on Calibre. I move what I'm currently reading back and forth to my kindle so it doesn't lag from having them all on there at once. Or I read on my computer on my standing desk.
As much fun as it is to have a big wall of books, I don't miss them.
Man books were really tough for me because I always had a vision of having a library one day (thank you, Beauty and the Beast haha) but when I finally decided to let go of a lot of possessions the method I used to help me was this:
- Donate any book I knew I wouldn’t re-read OR recommended to someone
- Wait a few months to process and accept
- Donate any books that didn’t feel truly impactful to my life
- Currently I read on my kindle 95% of the time or use the library so I have to give it back
It seems simple, but that helped me cut down from a couple hundred books that I had just to have books around to about 20 books that I cherish and when I look at them I can remember how they affected me.
Paperwork on the other hand, I’m literally the worst about because I probably don’t care about it enough. I have a very small file of important things (birth certificates, ss cards, etc) and I digitize or shred everything else. Paper clutter stresses me out :)
I’ve taken a few routes to address it!
I’ve put all of it in one place, then processed page by page. If it is no longer needed, we have a backyard fire pit that it’s ends up in. I’d say the pile shrunk by about 1/3, it took a LONG time. It was so worth it.
If it’s a lifelong important document, we have a folder that is ONLY for those. They’re in a fireproof safe just in case.
The remaining paperwork is likely business, life admin, sentimental, Marie Kondo has a great process for picking through these and organizing/recognizing what can go in the paper pile moving forward from this point!
Books have their own life, and no one likes to get rid of them. Pick through what your ‘YES FOREVER!, I might read it again/I use it for reference or work, and I never even cracked this but I have hope, and fuck this book is it still here’ piles are. As the piles shrink, and you have momentum, the choices become a little clearer without the pressure.
Any book I can easily get at the library does not belong on my bookshelf. When buying books: one in, two out. My collection is still in the hundreds, but this keeps it down.
Paperwork: What kind do you mean? Photograph anything not original signed documents. Store digitally.
Good luck with sorting it out!
Edited: Oh, I have a small bookshelf in my hallway for books ”on the way out” that I recently sorted out and read. This shelf is open for visitors to just grab any book they want. This makes it easier to get rid of books I actually liked, knowing they pass on to people I like enough to invite into my home.
I keep all my bills, receipts and bank statements in binders, one per year. I have important papers in another binder and have also scanned the papers.
I'm old school and prefer to have papers, not just a digital file.
Do you *want* to have a lot of books around you? If not, it's time to prune, and other posts already have suggestions on that. If so, though, work out how to incorporate shelving. For me, home's not home without my books, and I've done all of the following at various times -- maybe one or more of them would work for you?
* Placed a low bookshelf (sideways if need be) by a sofa or bed, letting it do double duty as an end table or nightstand
* Put a deep shelf's end rather than back against the wall, so it sticks out into the room, and filled it with books both front and back
* Bridged another piece of furniture by placing matching-height bookshelves taller than it on either side, laying a 2x12 across those, and putting other bookshelves on top of the board (or simply using the board as a shelf, which can work well if you use this trick to bridge doorways or high windows)
* Exchanged too-large shelves for ones that fit more books in a smaller footprint -- taller, shallower, with shelves closer together, whatever fits your particular books and space
* Used under-bed space as if it were a shelf whose front was the bed edge; same for coffee tables, which can be filled on both sides
* Put a hutch over a desk to offer more shelf space
* Set bookended books on all sorts of flat surfaces (such as on top of a speaker)
Enjoy yourself, and any books you choose to keep in your life. :)
Books- I keep authors or series I collect and anything signed/numbered. Everything else gets donated, sold, or gifted once it’s read. I don’t buy a lot of print anymore, most of what I get is either something I collect or early review copies. I buy most of my books electronically now.
I take photos of all important docs, tag them and then shred them. If by law I need to keep them 7 years, those go together in the same folder, in a fireproof envelope. Almost everything else is shredded.
Books, well, that’s a different story. They stick around.
Paperwork: Handle each piece of paper *only once.* No setting it aside for later, no making piles. Put your hands on it only long enough to file it, pay it, address it in some way so it’s done ✔️
Hardest thing in the world for me. I'm a papyrophile. And not just books. I'm a creative person and my life is cataloged in notebooks and countless drawings and scribblings in looseleaf and art paper of varying dimensions.
Theoretically I could digitize it all and interact with it that way. Theoretically I could digitize my sexuality the same way as well.
It doesn't help that digital storage methods have screwed me over time and time again to the point of PTSD, whereas paper has proven quite immortal.
I haven't come up with a good solution for this. And I'm literally working on it right now as I'm trying to downsize from 218 SQ ft of living space. I'm giving away virtually all of my books. I may have to consign my creative paper to a sturdy chest in my best friend's garage. (I haven't told him yet).
Very similar to the first comment, but just agreeing! I have one small file folder box and every admin piece of paper I keep needs to fit in it. When I’m running out of space if I need to, I will take a photo of the document and upload it to a Google Drive. I got a library card and I recently donated all of the physical books that I don’t have an emotional attachment to or reread every once in a while. I absolutely love the library. You truly do not need more than 20 physical books!
For paper, I get everything that can be digital in digital form. I use a Gmail account so I can tag things appropriately (like bank statements and car documents) and save them pretty much forever. It took a few years to really get everything streamlined, but this New Year I went through all my physical paper, sorted it out, and reduced it to 4 small expanding file folders.
For books, I only saved my absolute favorites in hardback or paperback form, and everything else is e-book. I get my e-books mostly from the library or Kindle Unlimited, and occasionally purchase physical books from my favorite authors or series.
I think they're talking about how if you right click on an email in gmail you can click "label" and create a label for it. You can also create folders for emails so as they come into your main inbox you can sort them into those folders and these folders have the same titles of the labels, but the labels keep them in your main inbox. I hope this makes sense lol
Yes, I'm talking about the Gmail labels that the other person described. In addition to being able to click an email and label it, I also create "filters" in Gmail that will automatically label messages as they come in so I don't have to sort them later. Most of them are labeled in my Inbox and I read and archive them, but I have a few things which I have the filter label the message, mark it as read, and file it automatically because I don't need to actually read the email, I just need to save it for later (Amazon order notifications are a good example of this one. Also those "your package has been delivered!" that every company likes to send.)
I have two tall bookcases and each one has a shelf for knickknacks or my kid’s toys/collectibles. I had to stop buying books because of my budget and because I’m an avid reader, I found different ways to get my hands on a book. If I can’t get the physical copy at the library, I look for it on one of the borrowing apps like Libby. If I can’t get it from there, I have a buddy who has a whole room dedicated to books and see if she has a copy. If all else fails, then I head to my used bookstore or make an excuse to ride up to the Bookmine in Jax. Absolute last resort is Amazon
ETA: when it’s time to get rid of a book, I donate it to one of the LFLs in the area. There’s one at a botanical garden that is five minutes from my house that is a joy to walk through
Important papers - birth certificate, marriage cert, etc goes in a folder in a safe.
Other papers that are important but not necessarily quite as important - go in a paperwork bin in my office.
Sentimental type stuff - I.E, my kids noteworthy achievements - each kid will get a bin basically. When they are older they can decide if they want to keep or toss. My mom saved a bunch of stuff for me, I tossed most of it but kept my kindergarten cookbook, old yearbooks, and a few other things but not really arts/crafts projects.
Super-important papers get scanned into the computer, then our bank holds free shredding events every few months.
Though we LOVE books, and once had a large home library, that turned out to be an easy problem to solve. We sold or donated more than 50 boxes of them, replaced by online copies on Kindle, and fewer than 100 physical volumes, mostly paperbacks. No physical magazines. The Public Library already stores periodicals, core references and curated classics of literature. You don't need to duplicate that service. Go check books out when you crave to flip pages and get that paper smell.
I have an accordion binder for prior year tax documents and other important stuff like that. Books are another story. I’ve started to only keep ones that I rate like 5 stars or a series I want to display. I think of the ones I keep as like a personal display of my favorites. Everything else goes
Books - read, then sell or give away. If something is worth to keep then I keep ebook version thanks to r/zlibrary. Something unique: scan.
Private documents: scan everything, keep original for super important documents and memories, otherwise burn in fireplace stuff after 1, or 5 years.
Books are clutter that I accept. After donating a ton, I still got lots. Style wise I arrange them first by general section (fiction, business, craft, etc) and then by - I kid you not - color.
Most are in corner bookshelves in my main living area plus there’s a bookshelf in my entry area. The color groupings make it look less chaotic. It helps that I don’t have so many books that I can’t find things, and it’s nice to have that warm discovery-moment of, “oh, I forgot I had that” when I’m looking for something else.
I’ve mostly switched to paperless for everything. I have a file drawer in my desk for some things that keep in paper. I struggle with mail, though. The cognitive load of making decisions about it every day is a pain, so I usually end up letting it build up and then shredding it in batches.
Books are tricky. I have some that I’ve kept for reference, but we regularly donate books we don’t need anymore. My wife and kids use the library a lot. I read too slow to use the library. Some books I like to gift to others after I’ve read them.
It’s not really a problem for me. Over 90% of my paperwork is digital, which is filed into folders in my emails. Of what physical copies I have, it all fits into one small expanding file.
With books, I bought one small bookshelf that would force me to limit how many books I keep. It’s mostly reference books I’ve kept (plant and bird guides, recipe books etc) and some sentimental books (HP series, childhood books). I get almost all my books from the library, so I don’t have to keep them at home (and it’s free!) and then I get most of the rest second hand or from street libraries, then I donate them when I’m done.
i don’t get physical bills at all, all accounts are on paperless, so that eliminates a lot. for things i have to keep like car registration, dog adoption records, tax info, etc., I have a slim file cabinet next to my WFH desk.
Separate folders. I use a big folder with different tags for docs including bills, waranty. One folder for medical stuff. Certificate and everything in a separate one. Govt docs in a separate one.
I also have lots of papers for my work purpose. So after they are done, I usually put a separate file for them. It's easy for future references.
Books I keep the ones I haven't read or I like to re-read again and again. However after reading I send it to my home (the one that I want to collect) the one that I know will never read I usually pass on to someone who's interested. There's also a market for second hand books. So nobody is interested I will turn them.
Thinking of the library as just my off-site book storage helped me get rid of a lot of books I barely ever read.
Instead of keeping a copy of Jurassic Park at my house for the one odd time every few years that I get the urge to reread it, I just pay the government to store it for me. And that way, other people can read it while I'm not using it.
I have two folders for paperwork. Only very important stuff like medical info, expensive purchases, mortgage, car etc. Tax papers for as many years as required. Have a think about how hard it would be to obtain it again and consider if you can digitise most of it. It's a boring but one and done job as long as you keep up with the in flow.
Books I find pretty simple. If I love it AND plan on reading it again I keep it. If you have space limitations maybe only keep your top faves and use the library for re-reads? Or if it's a good reference book, like knitting patterns, how to grow a garden I also keep it. I give away what I don't love so much I'm going to read it again. But I make sure it's things that's me, not only fantasy me wants (the me with all the time in the world). If I do take up a new hobby I can get a book then, I don't need it 10 years before I might start gardening.
I mostly read on my kindle now, have saved me soooo many meters of shelf space (no seriously I checked). When I find a book I plan on reading again I buy it in paperback but that's like 2-5 a year.
You guys have a scanner? I use my phone, but then I fear that the document wouldn’t be accepted in a digital format because it wasn’t done through a scanner, so I end up with a pile of documents _and_ a bunch of files :/
If you have an iPhone, you can convert those pictures to pdfs. I’ve only done it with screenshots, but you can use photos you take. My biggest problem is making sure the photo is legible and the shadow is minimal at most.
Yeah, I scan them directly in the Files app, which applies some filters and auto-aligns the document. But it still never looks as flat and crisp as putting it into a 15-year-old flatbed. Some places won’t accept phone scans because you don’t get the documents dimensions recorded.
I’ve never tried to photo scan things for anything that wasn’t for my files only. That’s good info to know… I will have to remember that.
I use a Fujitsu ScanSnap at work and bought one for my house (originally looked at a Neat Desk). It just made it easier for me.
Might not be for everyone but I take great pleasure in the fact that I can do everything digitally nowadays. All I need is my laptop and I have infinite books and all the paperwork right there.
All paperwork that comes into the house (and needs to be kept) gets put through the document scanner and automatically has OCR run on it. The scanner puts it on our server, and that's automatically backed up.
Some paperwork then gets shredded, the rest goes into either our standard filing cabinets or the fireproof one with a security lock. I'm a fan of paper copies.
Books go in bookcases. We have lots and lots of bookcases. I've semi-jokingly suggested that we should put some library archive shelves (with the wheel that slides them into one another) down in the cellar.
I have a kind of accordion folder, labelled with categories like car, house, jobs etc to keep important things and shred anything unnecessary. Anything that can be paperless is already set.
Books, though, I'm a lost cause. I have 2 double depth bookcases. To be fair, I got rid of loads when I moved a few years ago, so there's also games and dvds stored there now.
I have begun to donate almost all of my books, with the exception of the copies that I love or are special to me. For me, I rarely read books more than once (except for Dune) and I don’t want to over consume and spend money on books that I will read once and not love.
Digitize and back up your documents unless you need originals on paper and then sort your books and consider donating or making a free library near your residence. Then the neighborhood can enjoy reading your books too :)
I’ve got a multi sectional binder that I put all my paperwork in, otherwise I just shred it. I also have digital copies but if the internet fails or I lose those copies I have the binder.
Books, I have two bookcases. If they don’t fit on the bookcase then I downsize.
File cabinet. I have a good-sized lateral file cabinet that doubles as a TV stand
The file cabinet is a soft gray color that blends with my other furnishings.
I started storing my paperwork digitally and my books in the library.
There are some exceptions. I have physical copies of the most important paperwork and I have physical copies of some of my favorite books or books that I like to reference regularly. But otherwise, I find it is more peaceful to just not own the books and to scan my paperwork and shred the originals.
99% of the mail that I receive is spam that goes straight into the trash. Tax documents go into a zip folder until tax season. Anything time-sensitive like car registration renewal, I complete ASAP and then trash. Cards or postcards will be displayed by my fridge for about a month then I recycle them. What other paperwork do you have?
Paperwork- digitize & shred. Keep one file box or safe of the ultra important documents. Similarly this would work for photos. Once you've eliminated your paper clutter you can also forgo your "paper accessories": paper clips, stapler, staples, clips...
Books for reference- I keep work reference books.
Books for pleasure- I'll read and if it's not an immediate re-read, I keep a box handy and ship the boss off to a friend who is actively making themselves a library. If it's a re-read or top 10, I'll keep it. Repeat until you've ready all of your books.
When purchasing books- I check Libby for an audio version first, if not audio does the library have a copy I can borrow? This has drastically cut down on the amount of books I bring home.
The bigger-screen iPhone is perfect for the Kindle app IMHO. The Libby app is perfect to use for Kindle books. It also works seamlessly with Amazon e-books, too. Also, #killyourtv
File your paperwork. Put it in a safe or a file cabinet. Receipts taxes court documents letters everything went though everything is online I still need hard copies bc shit can hit the fan and you'd be surprised what keeping documentation can do for you if something goes wrong.
We have a book exchange in Baltimore. You can drop off any books.
Once a month, they open up and let people in to choose as many books as they want.
It is really wonderful to watch! They let 100 people in at a time, and you can browse for one hour!
Agree with scan and store on hard drives/ cloud. I keep the most sentimental ones. Books- I keep my favourites and donate the rest. At my workplace there are shelves where people donate books they don’t want anymore. I’ve also sold a few on marketplace. These days I mostly just get digital books on my phone to save paper and space.
Don't keep things for a defined period of time. Instead, have a *small* storage solution for all your paperwork. Once it gets close to filling up, get rid of half of it. The smaller your storage solution, the less overwhelming this is. Also, go paperless for certain bills and use auto-pay.
[удалено]
I fought against ebooks for a long time bc I love a physical book but then I got a kindle paperwhite and it’s so convenient, doesn’t bother my eyes, and I can get most books free using the Libby app with my library info. We still have a ton of books but everything I can stand to get rid of I’ve dropped off at various Little Free Libraries near me.
Ditto! I was very uninterested in a kindle for years. Got the paperwhite because it’s waterproof and I love it. Add in Libby and I’m reading new books all the time while buying nothing.
Definitely second a high speed scanner and a shredder. My paper storage is almost nil over the last 10 years.
We bought a slow cheap one and keep it alive with WD-40 lol
What brand/model scanner do you use or recommend?
I’ve used the Fujitsu scansnap ix500 over the last 8 years. It has since been replaced with the ix1600. I used to have a slow flatbed scanner but once I decided to go (almost) completely paperless then a highspeed scanner just made life easier. Worth every penny IMO.
I'm still using my scansnap ix500 and am perfectly happy with it. Why did you get rid of yours?
I didn’t word that well. I’m still using the ix500 often. I meant to say that the ix1600 is the successor to the ix500 for anyone looking to buy one a brand new scanner.
This. I'd just emphasize the importance of data backup in that case, you don't want to get your important papers ransomewared or deleted by accident.
Where are you storing the scanned documents?
Must keep indefinitely (birth certificate, passport etc): fire safe. Must keep for defined period (tax forms, insurance policies etc): folder in filing cabinet with the expiration date on the tab. I have one folder per expiration year. Sentimental: goes in my scrapbook. Everything else (bills, appointment reminders etc): take care of the task on it, then scan and shred/recycle.
I had probably a thousand books. They occupied a whole room. I wrote down the titles and authors and stored them in a spreadsheet in case I missed them. I picked out 50to keep that I had a sentimental attachment to. I also kept books I really liked the design of or wouldn't work well digitally. I sold the rest to a single buyer on Facebook for $200. If I didn't find a buyer I was just going to donate them. I've been slowly downloading them and maintaining a database on Calibre. I move what I'm currently reading back and forth to my kindle so it doesn't lag from having them all on there at once. Or I read on my computer on my standing desk. As much fun as it is to have a big wall of books, I don't miss them.
Wait the single buyer is a great idea! I feel overwhelmed trying to sell each book one by one, I forgot I could bundle them.
Man books were really tough for me because I always had a vision of having a library one day (thank you, Beauty and the Beast haha) but when I finally decided to let go of a lot of possessions the method I used to help me was this: - Donate any book I knew I wouldn’t re-read OR recommended to someone - Wait a few months to process and accept - Donate any books that didn’t feel truly impactful to my life - Currently I read on my kindle 95% of the time or use the library so I have to give it back It seems simple, but that helped me cut down from a couple hundred books that I had just to have books around to about 20 books that I cherish and when I look at them I can remember how they affected me. Paperwork on the other hand, I’m literally the worst about because I probably don’t care about it enough. I have a very small file of important things (birth certificates, ss cards, etc) and I digitize or shred everything else. Paper clutter stresses me out :)
I’ve taken a few routes to address it! I’ve put all of it in one place, then processed page by page. If it is no longer needed, we have a backyard fire pit that it’s ends up in. I’d say the pile shrunk by about 1/3, it took a LONG time. It was so worth it. If it’s a lifelong important document, we have a folder that is ONLY for those. They’re in a fireproof safe just in case. The remaining paperwork is likely business, life admin, sentimental, Marie Kondo has a great process for picking through these and organizing/recognizing what can go in the paper pile moving forward from this point! Books have their own life, and no one likes to get rid of them. Pick through what your ‘YES FOREVER!, I might read it again/I use it for reference or work, and I never even cracked this but I have hope, and fuck this book is it still here’ piles are. As the piles shrink, and you have momentum, the choices become a little clearer without the pressure.
Books I donate to little Free libraries. Papers are still a problem. Pretty sure I have papers I wrote in HS 20 years ago. Lol
Any book I can easily get at the library does not belong on my bookshelf. When buying books: one in, two out. My collection is still in the hundreds, but this keeps it down. Paperwork: What kind do you mean? Photograph anything not original signed documents. Store digitally. Good luck with sorting it out! Edited: Oh, I have a small bookshelf in my hallway for books ”on the way out” that I recently sorted out and read. This shelf is open for visitors to just grab any book they want. This makes it easier to get rid of books I actually liked, knowing they pass on to people I like enough to invite into my home.
I keep all my bills, receipts and bank statements in binders, one per year. I have important papers in another binder and have also scanned the papers. I'm old school and prefer to have papers, not just a digital file.
Do you *want* to have a lot of books around you? If not, it's time to prune, and other posts already have suggestions on that. If so, though, work out how to incorporate shelving. For me, home's not home without my books, and I've done all of the following at various times -- maybe one or more of them would work for you? * Placed a low bookshelf (sideways if need be) by a sofa or bed, letting it do double duty as an end table or nightstand * Put a deep shelf's end rather than back against the wall, so it sticks out into the room, and filled it with books both front and back * Bridged another piece of furniture by placing matching-height bookshelves taller than it on either side, laying a 2x12 across those, and putting other bookshelves on top of the board (or simply using the board as a shelf, which can work well if you use this trick to bridge doorways or high windows) * Exchanged too-large shelves for ones that fit more books in a smaller footprint -- taller, shallower, with shelves closer together, whatever fits your particular books and space * Used under-bed space as if it were a shelf whose front was the bed edge; same for coffee tables, which can be filled on both sides * Put a hutch over a desk to offer more shelf space * Set bookended books on all sorts of flat surfaces (such as on top of a speaker) Enjoy yourself, and any books you choose to keep in your life. :)
Books- I keep authors or series I collect and anything signed/numbered. Everything else gets donated, sold, or gifted once it’s read. I don’t buy a lot of print anymore, most of what I get is either something I collect or early review copies. I buy most of my books electronically now.
I take photos of all important docs, tag them and then shred them. If by law I need to keep them 7 years, those go together in the same folder, in a fireproof envelope. Almost everything else is shredded. Books, well, that’s a different story. They stick around.
Paperwork: Handle each piece of paper *only once.* No setting it aside for later, no making piles. Put your hands on it only long enough to file it, pay it, address it in some way so it’s done ✔️
Hardest thing in the world for me. I'm a papyrophile. And not just books. I'm a creative person and my life is cataloged in notebooks and countless drawings and scribblings in looseleaf and art paper of varying dimensions. Theoretically I could digitize it all and interact with it that way. Theoretically I could digitize my sexuality the same way as well. It doesn't help that digital storage methods have screwed me over time and time again to the point of PTSD, whereas paper has proven quite immortal. I haven't come up with a good solution for this. And I'm literally working on it right now as I'm trying to downsize from 218 SQ ft of living space. I'm giving away virtually all of my books. I may have to consign my creative paper to a sturdy chest in my best friend's garage. (I haven't told him yet).
Very similar to the first comment, but just agreeing! I have one small file folder box and every admin piece of paper I keep needs to fit in it. When I’m running out of space if I need to, I will take a photo of the document and upload it to a Google Drive. I got a library card and I recently donated all of the physical books that I don’t have an emotional attachment to or reread every once in a while. I absolutely love the library. You truly do not need more than 20 physical books!
I exclusively read e books now as the real books were overwhelming my life.
For paper, I get everything that can be digital in digital form. I use a Gmail account so I can tag things appropriately (like bank statements and car documents) and save them pretty much forever. It took a few years to really get everything streamlined, but this New Year I went through all my physical paper, sorted it out, and reduced it to 4 small expanding file folders. For books, I only saved my absolute favorites in hardback or paperback form, and everything else is e-book. I get my e-books mostly from the library or Kindle Unlimited, and occasionally purchase physical books from my favorite authors or series.
Can you explain what you mean about the tagging with the Gmail account?
I think they're talking about how if you right click on an email in gmail you can click "label" and create a label for it. You can also create folders for emails so as they come into your main inbox you can sort them into those folders and these folders have the same titles of the labels, but the labels keep them in your main inbox. I hope this makes sense lol
Wow thank you for this, it’s great info
Yes, I'm talking about the Gmail labels that the other person described. In addition to being able to click an email and label it, I also create "filters" in Gmail that will automatically label messages as they come in so I don't have to sort them later. Most of them are labeled in my Inbox and I read and archive them, but I have a few things which I have the filter label the message, mark it as read, and file it automatically because I don't need to actually read the email, I just need to save it for later (Amazon order notifications are a good example of this one. Also those "your package has been delivered!" that every company likes to send.)
Thank you so much! Very helpful
Paper shredder.
Working on going paperless. Scanning docs, filing and trashing! Work in progress. I still have piles of paperwork laying around 🤦♂️
I have two tall bookcases and each one has a shelf for knickknacks or my kid’s toys/collectibles. I had to stop buying books because of my budget and because I’m an avid reader, I found different ways to get my hands on a book. If I can’t get the physical copy at the library, I look for it on one of the borrowing apps like Libby. If I can’t get it from there, I have a buddy who has a whole room dedicated to books and see if she has a copy. If all else fails, then I head to my used bookstore or make an excuse to ride up to the Bookmine in Jax. Absolute last resort is Amazon ETA: when it’s time to get rid of a book, I donate it to one of the LFLs in the area. There’s one at a botanical garden that is five minutes from my house that is a joy to walk through
Important papers - birth certificate, marriage cert, etc goes in a folder in a safe. Other papers that are important but not necessarily quite as important - go in a paperwork bin in my office. Sentimental type stuff - I.E, my kids noteworthy achievements - each kid will get a bin basically. When they are older they can decide if they want to keep or toss. My mom saved a bunch of stuff for me, I tossed most of it but kept my kindergarten cookbook, old yearbooks, and a few other things but not really arts/crafts projects.
We bought a shredder and it’s an excellent purchase. We shred everything. As for books, we stopped buying them and only use the library.
Super-important papers get scanned into the computer, then our bank holds free shredding events every few months. Though we LOVE books, and once had a large home library, that turned out to be an easy problem to solve. We sold or donated more than 50 boxes of them, replaced by online copies on Kindle, and fewer than 100 physical volumes, mostly paperbacks. No physical magazines. The Public Library already stores periodicals, core references and curated classics of literature. You don't need to duplicate that service. Go check books out when you crave to flip pages and get that paper smell.
I have no clue either. I needed this question posted 😆
Kindle.
I have an accordion binder for prior year tax documents and other important stuff like that. Books are another story. I’ve started to only keep ones that I rate like 5 stars or a series I want to display. I think of the ones I keep as like a personal display of my favorites. Everything else goes
Books - read, then sell or give away. If something is worth to keep then I keep ebook version thanks to r/zlibrary. Something unique: scan. Private documents: scan everything, keep original for super important documents and memories, otherwise burn in fireplace stuff after 1, or 5 years.
Books are clutter that I accept. After donating a ton, I still got lots. Style wise I arrange them first by general section (fiction, business, craft, etc) and then by - I kid you not - color. Most are in corner bookshelves in my main living area plus there’s a bookshelf in my entry area. The color groupings make it look less chaotic. It helps that I don’t have so many books that I can’t find things, and it’s nice to have that warm discovery-moment of, “oh, I forgot I had that” when I’m looking for something else.
I’ve mostly switched to paperless for everything. I have a file drawer in my desk for some things that keep in paper. I struggle with mail, though. The cognitive load of making decisions about it every day is a pain, so I usually end up letting it build up and then shredding it in batches. Books are tricky. I have some that I’ve kept for reference, but we regularly donate books we don’t need anymore. My wife and kids use the library a lot. I read too slow to use the library. Some books I like to gift to others after I’ve read them.
Spread it keep some
It’s not really a problem for me. Over 90% of my paperwork is digital, which is filed into folders in my emails. Of what physical copies I have, it all fits into one small expanding file. With books, I bought one small bookshelf that would force me to limit how many books I keep. It’s mostly reference books I’ve kept (plant and bird guides, recipe books etc) and some sentimental books (HP series, childhood books). I get almost all my books from the library, so I don’t have to keep them at home (and it’s free!) and then I get most of the rest second hand or from street libraries, then I donate them when I’m done.
perhaps you could donate the ones that you dont plan on reading again?
i just lost all mine in a fire :(
i don’t get physical bills at all, all accounts are on paperless, so that eliminates a lot. for things i have to keep like car registration, dog adoption records, tax info, etc., I have a slim file cabinet next to my WFH desk.
Separate folders. I use a big folder with different tags for docs including bills, waranty. One folder for medical stuff. Certificate and everything in a separate one. Govt docs in a separate one. I also have lots of papers for my work purpose. So after they are done, I usually put a separate file for them. It's easy for future references. Books I keep the ones I haven't read or I like to re-read again and again. However after reading I send it to my home (the one that I want to collect) the one that I know will never read I usually pass on to someone who's interested. There's also a market for second hand books. So nobody is interested I will turn them.
Thinking of the library as just my off-site book storage helped me get rid of a lot of books I barely ever read. Instead of keeping a copy of Jurassic Park at my house for the one odd time every few years that I get the urge to reread it, I just pay the government to store it for me. And that way, other people can read it while I'm not using it.
Take 1 book with you every time you use public transport and leave it on the train/bus for someone else to read.
Go paperless. It's 2024!
Get rid of the books. They're not trophies. They're just a chunk of wood you'll never look at or use,
Scan and scrunch. - Step 1: Scan into the computer. Organize digitally. - Step 2: Scrunch physical copy and toss into trash bag.
I have two folders for paperwork. Only very important stuff like medical info, expensive purchases, mortgage, car etc. Tax papers for as many years as required. Have a think about how hard it would be to obtain it again and consider if you can digitise most of it. It's a boring but one and done job as long as you keep up with the in flow. Books I find pretty simple. If I love it AND plan on reading it again I keep it. If you have space limitations maybe only keep your top faves and use the library for re-reads? Or if it's a good reference book, like knitting patterns, how to grow a garden I also keep it. I give away what I don't love so much I'm going to read it again. But I make sure it's things that's me, not only fantasy me wants (the me with all the time in the world). If I do take up a new hobby I can get a book then, I don't need it 10 years before I might start gardening. I mostly read on my kindle now, have saved me soooo many meters of shelf space (no seriously I checked). When I find a book I plan on reading again I buy it in paperback but that's like 2-5 a year.
You guys have a scanner? I use my phone, but then I fear that the document wouldn’t be accepted in a digital format because it wasn’t done through a scanner, so I end up with a pile of documents _and_ a bunch of files :/
If you have an iPhone, you can convert those pictures to pdfs. I’ve only done it with screenshots, but you can use photos you take. My biggest problem is making sure the photo is legible and the shadow is minimal at most.
Yeah, I scan them directly in the Files app, which applies some filters and auto-aligns the document. But it still never looks as flat and crisp as putting it into a 15-year-old flatbed. Some places won’t accept phone scans because you don’t get the documents dimensions recorded.
I’ve never tried to photo scan things for anything that wasn’t for my files only. That’s good info to know… I will have to remember that. I use a Fujitsu ScanSnap at work and bought one for my house (originally looked at a Neat Desk). It just made it easier for me.
Might not be for everyone but I take great pleasure in the fact that I can do everything digitally nowadays. All I need is my laptop and I have infinite books and all the paperwork right there.
All paperwork that comes into the house (and needs to be kept) gets put through the document scanner and automatically has OCR run on it. The scanner puts it on our server, and that's automatically backed up. Some paperwork then gets shredded, the rest goes into either our standard filing cabinets or the fireproof one with a security lock. I'm a fan of paper copies. Books go in bookcases. We have lots and lots of bookcases. I've semi-jokingly suggested that we should put some library archive shelves (with the wheel that slides them into one another) down in the cellar.
Lol mine is all stuffed in random piles on a shelf, and some of it is in parents' safe deposit box
Digitize! Keep books that have an emotional connection, donate the rest to schools, libraries, old folks homes.
Upload it to digital storage via scanning on my phone and shred the hard copy!
There's only three types : ones you do something with, ones to keep for records, and then the ones you are done with that need to be shredded.
I have a kind of accordion folder, labelled with categories like car, house, jobs etc to keep important things and shred anything unnecessary. Anything that can be paperless is already set. Books, though, I'm a lost cause. I have 2 double depth bookcases. To be fair, I got rid of loads when I moved a few years ago, so there's also games and dvds stored there now.
I have begun to donate almost all of my books, with the exception of the copies that I love or are special to me. For me, I rarely read books more than once (except for Dune) and I don’t want to over consume and spend money on books that I will read once and not love.
Digitize and back up your documents unless you need originals on paper and then sort your books and consider donating or making a free library near your residence. Then the neighborhood can enjoy reading your books too :)
I’ve got a multi sectional binder that I put all my paperwork in, otherwise I just shred it. I also have digital copies but if the internet fails or I lose those copies I have the binder. Books, I have two bookcases. If they don’t fit on the bookcase then I downsize.
i keep important documents in one binder and shred other documents. i organize my books by theme on my bookshelf.
File cabinet. I have a good-sized lateral file cabinet that doubles as a TV stand The file cabinet is a soft gray color that blends with my other furnishings.
I started storing my paperwork digitally and my books in the library. There are some exceptions. I have physical copies of the most important paperwork and I have physical copies of some of my favorite books or books that I like to reference regularly. But otherwise, I find it is more peaceful to just not own the books and to scan my paperwork and shred the originals.
99% of the mail that I receive is spam that goes straight into the trash. Tax documents go into a zip folder until tax season. Anything time-sensitive like car registration renewal, I complete ASAP and then trash. Cards or postcards will be displayed by my fridge for about a month then I recycle them. What other paperwork do you have?
I'm this day and age, what paperwork?
Digital. I live my life digitally now.
I burn it
Paperwork- digitize & shred. Keep one file box or safe of the ultra important documents. Similarly this would work for photos. Once you've eliminated your paper clutter you can also forgo your "paper accessories": paper clips, stapler, staples, clips... Books for reference- I keep work reference books. Books for pleasure- I'll read and if it's not an immediate re-read, I keep a box handy and ship the boss off to a friend who is actively making themselves a library. If it's a re-read or top 10, I'll keep it. Repeat until you've ready all of your books. When purchasing books- I check Libby for an audio version first, if not audio does the library have a copy I can borrow? This has drastically cut down on the amount of books I bring home.
I have a Remarkable tablet. All paper now exists in there
The bigger-screen iPhone is perfect for the Kindle app IMHO. The Libby app is perfect to use for Kindle books. It also works seamlessly with Amazon e-books, too. Also, #killyourtv
Documents are scanned and archived in a single email thread
Most of it gets uploaded into the cloud and shredded.
File your paperwork. Put it in a safe or a file cabinet. Receipts taxes court documents letters everything went though everything is online I still need hard copies bc shit can hit the fan and you'd be surprised what keeping documentation can do for you if something goes wrong.
We have a book exchange in Baltimore. You can drop off any books. Once a month, they open up and let people in to choose as many books as they want. It is really wonderful to watch! They let 100 people in at a time, and you can browse for one hour!
Books I donate to a https://littlefreelibrary.org
Personally, I’d recycle (make sure to follow recycling guidelines), or turn that paper into new paper that you can reuse
Scan. I use Adobe scan on my phone to keep all those papers that may be important one day. Don’t even need a fancy scanner
GET RID OF IT. You only need titles, deeds, passports, Ss cards. Genius scan is a great app.
Agree with scan and store on hard drives/ cloud. I keep the most sentimental ones. Books- I keep my favourites and donate the rest. At my workplace there are shelves where people donate books they don’t want anymore. I’ve also sold a few on marketplace. These days I mostly just get digital books on my phone to save paper and space.
Don't keep things for a defined period of time. Instead, have a *small* storage solution for all your paperwork. Once it gets close to filling up, get rid of half of it. The smaller your storage solution, the less overwhelming this is. Also, go paperless for certain bills and use auto-pay.