For me, staying organized is partly about constant maintenance. It sounds burdensome, but it’s actually more a matter of accomplishing quick, small tasks that create maximum effect in minimal time. By doing a quick thing now and then to declutter or organize, you avoid the pile-up effect…where things are just so messy and disorganized that you have to basically take a week off to tackle a massive organization project. Here are five things you can do that will help you stay organized and likely won’t take more than five minutes:

• Go through old receipts. Throw out any that are over a year old (excepting those that are for huge purchases, like furniture or a television).
• Go through old pay stubs from work. Throw out any that are over a year old and then sign up for paperless pay if your employer offers it. If you don’t have pay stubs, take one file folder and go through it – thin out the old papers you don’t need from it. Not the whole filing cabinet or drawer – just one file!
• Take a few minutes to sign up for paperless billing on anything that allows.
• Go through your fridge. Throw out anything that is expired.
• Clean out your junk drawer! Seriously, I did it recently and I got rid of tons of pens and random sticky notes that I never use. So much easier to find things now.

The main point here is, you can make a difference in your space without devoting a big block of time to the endeavor. However, you never know – accomplishing one of these quick things may just help motivate you to take on even bigger decluttering projects!