This week's recommendation is something I think most everyone is aware of but I do…
Tuesday Recs, May 5th, 2026
In an effort to make these recommendations feel less transactional and more Carole Wants To Make My Life Better, today I have a recommendation that costs zero dollars. And it’s related to your daily mail. And no, it’s not a repeat of subscribing to the informed mail service from the USPS.
Mail. We all get it: bills, catalogs, political flyers, mystery envelopes that somehow feel threatening. If you don’t deal with it right away, it piles up fast. And once there’s a pile? Suddenly it’s overwhelming, messy, and feels like a whole project.
So. My advice is this:
Whenever possible, touch each piece of mail only once.
If it’s a bill, pay it or file it where you keep your bills to be paid. If it’s a reminder to schedule service on your car or a medical procedure or something of that nature, make the appointment immediately. If it’s junk, put it straight into the recycling bin. That daily pile gets sorted and disposed of in no time, and it never has the chance to become A Thing.
You’re welcome.
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I agree! I learned this at a time management seminar way back when I was working. The advice we were given was “handle each piece of paper once”. I have (mostly) done that ever since and it works well. My mail is now just political flyers and I voted by mail a couple of weeks ago. (Now if I could just get my spouse to quit making piles of paper all over the house!)
Yup – I do this all the time. In fact, I looked at each piece as I walked up our driveway yesterday afternoon and was able to throw everything into the recycle bin before I went inside! My favorite thing to get? Letters! One of my brothers writes to me regularly (and I write back).
I am in this camp as well… mostly! The only thing that gets multiple touches are cards and letters from friends, my kids and grandkids. That kind of mail is the best kind of mail on earth!
Excellent advice. I try to follow the “handle a piece of paper once” but my dear husband doesn’t understand the practice. However he has other good qualities.
Such great advice! I am pretty good about dealing with it right away — I open the stuff that’s for me and discard/recycle what I don’t need. My husband, on the other hand, leaves stuff sitting there for days, including the envelopes from stuff he’s opened. Makes me nuts!
I especially love the days when I meet the mail carrier as they approach my front porch. They hand me the mail, I quickly sort it on my way to the back door & toss any junk into the recycle bin which just happens to be on the way!