Say the word organize to the average person and beads of perspiration suddenly appear along his or her brow. Thoughts of organizing and filing can induce elevated blood pressure levels and stress in an otherwise calm individual. Family historians purposely compound their organizing dilemmas by bringing extra paperwork into their homes. Without a methodical filing system, home and genealogical paperwork quickly get out of control.

First aid for your filing system has arrived. Join me weekly for tips and secrets that will help you take bite-sized chunks out of your filing woes. There's no time like the present, so let's get started.

Conquer the incoming mail
If you want to take charge of your filing system, the place to start is with the daily mail. Break the habit of bringing in the mail and dumping it in the usual pile. Instead, make a decision about each piece of mail as you touch it.

• Have a large wastebasket, a recycle bin, and a personal shredder within reach as you make your decisions. While the waste basket and recycle bin may be obvious, many people don't yet realize the value of owning a personal shredder. Consider the fact that as soon as you place your trash on the street, anyone can riffle through it and remove the financial and other private materials that you throw away. This is where a lot of fraud begins. To protect yourself and your family, shred any throw-away papers that contain your name and address together and anything with important numbers such as bank and credit account information.
• Any junk mail that doesn't have your name and address on it should be recycled, if possible, or thrown away.
  
• If you're not in the mood to shop, recycle the new catalogs so they don't accumulate-you'll get another catalog in another week or two. Don't forget to shred your address on the back of the catalog as well as the one on the order form.
  
• Put bills in a place designated for bills waiting to be paid. Throw away the envelope they come in, as well as the extraneous advertising materials that accompany the bill.
  
• Designate a mail location for each person in the household and divvy out the mail right away.
  
• Remaining items that must be kept for some future action or for reference should be placed in your "inbox" as a temporary resting place until you have time to take action or put the papers in their final resting place.
  
• Make sure and designate a specific location for all of your genealogy correspondence. If you don't, it's possible that you will lose potentially valuable research information in the mail shuffle.

Conquering your mail won't happen in a day. It's a process that takes discipline, but as you don't see piles accumulate each day, you'll feel a strong sense of accomplishment that will encourage you to conquer other organizing problems.