After procrastinating all sorts of organizational projects by reading about organization instead, I think I’ve finally hit upon the secret to organizing.

Get a big trashcan. Use it liberally.

Seriously, though. I’ll pick through the stack of papers on my desk wondering how to organize them, and find receipts for a pack of gum from four months ago and credit card offers that I never intend to open. I go through my (digital) desktop and find drafts of things I worked on four months ago. I don’t even need the final version, much less an abandoned draft.  I won’t even comment on my Inbox.  Err, Inboxes.

The key to organizing isn’t buying lots of little boxes and cabinets. It’s of buying one big box, and it’s not just any box. It’s a dumpster. But then you have to start using it more effectively: as soon as you decide you don’t need something, throw it out. When you check your e-mail and just get a bunch of junk, before you grumble and close the program, delete the unwanted messages. When you check the snail mail and it’s just credit card offers from predatory lenders, stick them in the shredder. (It’s fun!) And when you go to neaten out that drawer, if you don’t know why you have it, just throw it out!

*off to throw away some more stuff*