Peace of Mind Organizing

Help for catching up on your shredding

12 January 2011

One of the things I did during that glorious week between Christmas and New Year’s was clean out my files. My recycling box is full but I also have a large pile on top of my shredder.

I find shredding sort of unpleasant. It’s loud. And it’s messy when I empty the shredder. So, like many people, I tend to let it pile up. I really need to create a habit of regularly emptying the shredder to eliminate the barrier to shredding at the time I come across a document that needs to be shredded.

So I have this backlog of shredding. I’ve learned that sometimes the best way to start a new habit is to clear the slates and start from zero. When I decided to start the clean desk habit on January 5, 2008, I totally cleared off my desk, decluttered it, and replaced it with only those items that needed to be there. Then, every day, I cleared it off when I finished work. Easy.

Thanks to the St. Louis chapter of the National Association of Professional Organizers, of which I’m a proud board member, I’ll have an opportunity to clear my shredding slates at little or no cost.

NAPO St. Louis and Shred and Protect Document Services are pairing up to sponsor a Shred Event on Saturday, February 19 from 9 to 1. If you live in St. Louis, you can bring a banker’s box full of documents that need to be shredded (about 25 pounds) to Shred and Protect, which is located in Hanley Industrial Court in Brentwood and get it securely shredded free of charge. Additional boxes are $5 each. Such a deal. (I’m basing the pricing on last year’s event; keep your eye on my blog as we get closer to the event, in case the pricing’s changed. Or feel free to shoot me an email.) Shred and Protect is located in Hanley Industrial Court.

Of course, you don’t have to wait until February 19 to let Shred and Protect help you catch up with your shredding. They’re happy to help you any time for a fee (call ahead for drop off) and they’ll even come pick it up for you, if you’d like. I’ve been using them all year for my clients and am a very satisfied customer.

Maybe the Shred Event can motivate you to clean out your files. You have a month and a week. See if you can fill up a box and bring it in. There are so many benefits: Your file cabinet will be less full, your documents will be securely destroyed, the shreds will be recycled, and you don’t have to do the shredding yourself.

If you don’t live in St. Louis, Google around and see if you can find a similar event in your community. If you don’t find one, perhaps there’s a service you can pay. I think it’s well worth the small fee most commercial shredders charge to get all your shredding done in one fell swoop.

Tagged with: decluttering, identity theft, napo st. louis, paper management, shred and protect, shredders

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