Does your home office look disorganized? Do you have a bunch of papers taking up space in your filing cabinet that you no longer need to refer to from last year? It’s time to get organized! You can follow these seven simple ideas to help you get the job done.

1. To get started, collect the documents you no longer refer to regularly and prepare them for storage. Your storage method may vary depending on how much paper you have. You may decide to put different categories of papers in manila envelopes.

2. For example, you would put your electric bill receipts in an envelope. On the outside of the envelope simply write the words electric bill receipts.

3. Remember to write the year as well in case you need to pull out the receipts for any reason. He would put his phone bill receipts in another envelope. Get enough manila envelopes to collect and organize all your bill receipts from last year. Remember to include a miscellaneous envelope for things that seem uncategorized.

4. In your file drawer where last year’s receipts used to be, simply reuse this year’s hanging files. Make sure you have a file for each invoice category you have. Remember to include a miscellaneous file for things that seem to have no category.

5. An alternate way to categorize your bills would be by month. If you sort your bills by month, this will be a less detailed way of sorting your bills. If you’re the type of person who rarely looks at bills again, categorizing your bills by month may be the right method for you.

6. Another home office area to organize is your writing area. This includes the materials you use to send bills, cards, and letters. Materials you use for mailing include postage stamps, address labels, mailing forms, envelopes, and tape. Sometimes a small plastic container can hold all of these things so you know exactly where they are. Envelopes usually come in their own boxes, so envelopes are usually left out of your general postage supply box. You may also choose to put stationery in this box so you know exactly where it is for easy access. You can also put a ruler in this box, a magnifying glass and a pair of scissors.

7. Do whatever it takes to feel organized, do it. In the long run, you reduce stress and work more efficiently when you know where everything is.