I made a very simple set of goals for my post-plans with friends, pre-bed organizing. One of them was to deal with the mail from that day & the day previous. I think that’s a matter of routine for most people, but I have a tendency to let mail pile up for weeks or even months. It’s a major source of clutter & frustration.
The more I think about it, the more I realize I have a mental block about the mail. I open anything that’s personal – a note from family or friends will brighten my day – but anything remotely bill-like gets stacked and ignored. In my earliest days of adulthood, every official piece of mail was a demand for money. Today, as I opened mail from my health insurance provider, I was reminded of how that’s changed. It was a non-bill, telling me I’m all paid up.
Now, most of my official mail is like that. I autopay most things, and for others, I check the associated apps regularly and pay my bills rapidly for one off expenses. Most of my “bills” are just notices that everything got paid. It’s almost never anything to worry about or avoid. That was a stunning revelation tonight, and it makes addressing my mail easier, both for future incoming mail as well as the box of mail I have to sort through in this process.
The other realization is that my insurance will let me go paperless. That will help the environment and reduce clutter. One of the most useful chores I did tonight was to go paperless to avoid these stacks of paper in the future. Since I already pay my bills online and check in regularly to make sure there aren’t any surprise charges, I think going paperless is an easy choice for me. I look forward to less dread and less paper buildup on my landing strip.
What a lot of revelation for one opened “bill” to have had. I’m here for these little victories. They keep me going.
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