By Alicia Rockmore and Sarah Welch

Do you have a sense of dread when you open your mailbox? Not just because of bills, but also because of everything else that’s in there with the bills? Mail is like a weed: If you don’t keep it in check, it will spread out and eventually take over any and all empty tables, countertops, and chairs you’ve got. The consequences can be more than just clutter, too.

The National Association of Professional Organizers® estimates that 25% of Americans pay their bills late because they can’t find them. To make things even more difficult, postal workers delivered nearly 101 billion pieces of bulk mail in 2005, a 12 percent increase from two years previous. Strange to think there was actually a time when we waited excitedly for the mail to come, hoping for a letter or magazine. Fortunately, there are ways to stop fearing, and maybe even start anticipating, the mail again.

Here are a few simple steps to getting your countertops free of mail piles:
1. Create a Sorting System
2. Designate a “Sorting Time”
3. Reconsider Your Subscriptions to Magazines and Catalogs

1. Create a Sorting System
The best way to organize your mail is by getting an organizer. Start by getting a mail holder with at least three compartments. Make compartment #1 for bills, #2 for correspondence and #3 for things that need action (e.g., forms to mail back, coupons you want to use later in the week, etc.). It’s amazing how manageable the mail suddenly becomes when it’s broken down into categories.

2. Designate a “Sorting Time”
Pick a time every day (before you leave for work in the am or before you turn on the TV at night) and take a few short minutes to sort the mail into the compartments we mentioned above. Once you’ve done that, pick a day each week (same day/time) to go through and pay the bills, answer any correspondence, put invitations into calendars, and whatever action-oriented things you need to do.

3. Reconsider Your Subscriptions to Magazines and Catalogs
Magazines and catalogs take up an enormous amount of space in your mail. If there is a magazine you get but never have time to read, cancel your subscription. If there’s a catalog you used to like but haven’t ordered from for a while, contact them and request to be removed from their mailing list.

What works for you?