Extra tips for tackling bills and mail

The other day we looked at some bill paying and mail organizing solutions.

Today, some tips to go along with your actual supplies.

I can’t say “paperless office” enough. The hands down best way to get your mail and bills under control is to sign up for email bills vs. paper. Currently, every single bill I have offers a paperless bill option. Even my rent can be paid online at this point. Paperless billing saves more than mail space, it also saves you money and time. Paying online makes checks almost totally pointless, saves ink, and saves stamps.

If you don’t trust online bill paying, or only have access to a community computer, you can still divert your bills to your email account and then pay by phone.

If you must go the paper route, you can get organized by creating a basket for bill paying. Place your checkbook, stamps, a pen, and so on into a little basket. You could also use a desk drawer. It doesn’t really matter what you use, what matters is that you keep all your bill paying gear together.

For paper bill storage use a system like my current box, or grab some file folders, place them into your file cabinet, and set up a bill system. Good categories include; Bills to pay; bills for later; bill stubs to keep; and important company info (i.e. credit rates.) See more on planning a file system in mistakes people make with their filing system.

Choose two days a month to tackle bills. Some people do ok paying bills as they come, but it works best for me to do them all at once. I tend to do a first of month and 15th of month schedule, because it covers all my bills.

Don’t multi-task bills. Some people suggest paying bills or tackling mail during commercial breaks or when you have a quick second here or there. I don’t agree. You’ll get the job done faster and more efficiently if you sit, stay, and just do it.