Organizational Ideas

by Mary Jo Rulnick & Judith Burnett Schneider

Record keeping is one task you can’t ignore, even though as Frantic Women we try. And although it seems tedious, once you find a workable system, your paper-pushing time will diminish.

Here are six tips to get you started:

A rolling cart with drawers or bins allows you to separate papers into such categories as To Be Paid, To Be Filed and To Be Answered.
Purchase a package or two of colored file folders and an inexpensive plastic file box with a lid. These boxes store easily under beds or at the bottom of closets. Be careful as colored file folders can bleed when wet resulting in stubborn stains. If spilled or rained upon, dispose of immediately and replace with a fresh folder.
You might opt for buying accordion file folders that allow you to deposit paid bill statements in selected slots. Keep two check-sized accordion folders for receipts from personal and work-related expenses. Label your tabs “January” through “December” and deposit receipts in the corresponding sections. Mark the year on the outside of the folder. This tracking system makes tax preparation a cinch.
If you’d rather keep files a bit more accessible, place them in a magazine rack. But be sure to keep important documents like birth and stock certificates, life insurance policies and house and car deeds in a locked fireproof safe.
On the refrigerator, post a separate calendar containing credit card, mortgage and utility payment due dates. Include fees due for music lessons, orthodontist, tuition, and school loans. This allows you to see at a glance when to pay which bills and aids in budgeting overall monthly expenditures. In addition, maintain a bill-paying log, a notebook with pockets or a ledger. Record the month's payment amounts, dates paid, remaining balances and any statement discrepancies or questionable charges. If computer savvy, take advantage of the various software programs designed for this purpose.
When purchasing big-ticket items, we sometimes opt for deferred billing. Unfortunately, we can forget about the ending date and, before we know it, we're socked with a hefty fee and back-interest accumulated at a high rate. To avoid this expensive mistake, mark the deadline on your financial calendar and in your bill-paying log.

Stay tuned for our next segment!