Bonus: Be ready for tax filing by the end of the year!
As a home-based business, personal and business documents can quickly become overwhelming. However, when you follow a simple system and get in the habit of sorting frequently, you will feel less stressed, less overwhelmed, and much more productive. Not to mention that you’ll probably save a few hours each week by NOT having to search for “lost” paperwork! Any time you need an important document, it’s right there at your fingertips. 
FILING SYSTEM
This very simple system gets you in the habit of grouping. Just group similar documents together, and label them. Paperwork is much easier to process if you are only dealing with one handful of similar items at a time.
Using this system, you have current profit-and-loss calculations available at any time. As a big bonus, you can easily complete your bookkeeping by December 31st each year — and your business deductions are ready for your accountant to prepare your tax return early!
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IN Box. Place a shallow “IN” box or shoe box near your desk.
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Disposal Bins. Put 3 wastebaskets nearby and label as follows: trash bin, recycle bin, shred bin.
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Filing Sorters. Put 2 plastic/wire stand-up desktop file sorters near your desk. Label one “Personal” and the other “Business”. In each sorter, insert the following file folders. Plastic “box bottom” file folders are large enough to hold lots of paper (and nothing falls out the sides) and are also color coded. Label each folder (with a label maker or black Sharpie marker) for quick reference.
Personal Documents - need 7 file folders
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Author: Riley Klein