For the past couple of days I neglected to sort through my mail. Instead of opening it and immediately recycling the junk and processing the rest, like I usually do, I let it sit in a pile on the corner of my desk. It was amazing how big the pile was after just a few days.
The pile reminded me of just how quickly my clients must find themselves overwhelmed when they neglect their mail. Processing my mail typically takes no more than five minutes a day, but for the past couple of days I chose to spend those minutes doing something else. Not a wise choice in hindsight.
I’ve worked with a lot of people over the years who have each dug out from under enough paper to fill five, ten, twenty or more filing cabinets. Paper that was sitting around their home for years. Paper that was taking up valuable living space. Paper that caused them stress, guilt and a lot of frustration, not to mention a lot of their time to get rid of it. Paper that we sorted through together to separate what’s important from what should have been recycled or shredded long ago. I’m guessing given a chance at a do-over, most of these folks would have chosen to take five to process the mail daily.