How to Finally Give up Paper at Home Because Time Has Passed
Avoiding paperwork doesn’t have to be limited to office work. With online bill payment and services like Apple Pay, Google Pay, Zelle, CashApp, and Venmo, you can get rid of almost all your financial clutter. But why stop there? Avoiding paperwork can apply to almost every area of your life, so here are some ways to make a complete transition at home.
Sign up for an electronic bank statement
The connection to the electronic statement is made through the website or application of your banking institution. If you have not already done so, register with the online bank. Once you have done this, it will ask you if you prefer electronic statements and emails. Agree to the terms and include an email address that you check regularly to track your finances online.
Download online bill payment apps
Almost every bill you pay has an online platform or app to manage and pay your debt. Download them as needed and keep them in one folder on your device to keep your digital life organized. Most of the apps can be found on the iPhone or Android app store.
However, if having a million different apps isn’t for you, you can use Simplifi or Truebill to combine all your account information in one place for easy tracking. Just make sure you subscribe to e-invoices and statements so you don’t get paper invoices anymore. Some banks, such as Ally Bank or Chime, operate completely online.
Digitize your signature
In the past, this process was a bit tricky: you had to take a photo of your signature, upload it, and remove the background for easy insertion into any PDF or Word document. While you can still do this, there is an easier way: if you have a Mac with PDF previews, you can create a saved signature. Just open the PDF on your Mac, click Tools, choose Annotate, then Signature. You will see another dropdown menu with the Manage Signatures option and the Create Signature option . It will ask you to draw your signature using the trackpad (don’t worry, it lets you try as many times as you like).
The preview also takes an image of the signature using the computer’s camera in the “Signature Management” mode. The signature will be saved in a preview for use on any documents you need to sign, just follow the same instructions.
And when you need signatures from yourself and others, consider subscribing to digital signature services such as Docusign and Hello Sign . This is a convenient way to request a signature, sign a document, and get a digital copy for your records. And if you need other ways to electronically sign documents, you can find our guide here .
Scan and clean up all your old paper clutter
Find a day (or weekend, or week) to digitize all of your important documents. Once this is done, it’s time to start getting rid of the paper already in your home.
You will want to scan important documents such as contracts and medical records. (It’s even better if you can find a digital copy somewhere in your inbox.) You will want to keep original copies of federal documents such as birth certificates, vaccination records, and marriage certificates, but you must still scan them for an online backup. This will make it easier to replace them if you ever need them.
In addition to a physical scanner, online platforms like Google Drive have scanning capabilities to take a snapshot of a document and upload it directly to your drive. We’ve already reported on the benefits of scanning apps like Scanbot for Android in the past, with features that are especially useful for receipts and other documents.
How to unsubscribe from junk mail
Once upon a time, getting coupons and deals on your home was really rewarding. Now that newsletters are sent out by email and social media is doing everything, most directories only add to our junk mail heap and it can be difficult to prevent this mail from being received.
Fortunately, there are sites like Directory Choice and Eco Cycle to stop the onslaught of spam. Such sites will contact directories or credit card agencies and unsubscribe for you. They take on the hard work, so you can take papers out of the house so they don’t pile up again.
If you’d like to opt out of manual credit card offers and mailings, look for terms in the fine print of your ongoing toll free number promotions to remove yourself from their marketing lists. However, it will be similar to playing Hit the Mole, so using services such as Select Directory or Ego Cycle is an easier option.
Get in the habit of saving documents in PDF format
After everything is digitized and cleaned up, get in the habit of keeping it that way. When you receive an invoice, invoice or form, click Print and select Save as PDF instead of printing it out. Store your files securely with two-factor authentication and relax in the knowledge that you have a lot more physical space in your home and that organizing your digital folders will be much easier than a stack of papers.