Project Organize :: Tickler File Organization.

TICKLE, TICKLE, TICKLER FILE ORGANIZATION by Kristi of Creative Kristi


Hi all! My name is Kristi and I blog about cheap home renovations, frugal living, crafting, and life!

I am so excited to share my best organizational tip today! I implemented a ‘tickler’ file system almost 2 years ago and I have not forgotten a payment/bill/etc. since then! It takes a little bit to set up but after it’s set up the ‘up-keep’ is minimal!

This is something you can easily make yourself with just a couple hanging file folders & manila folders but I went the ‘easy’ way and bought a tickler file from here and then put hanging folders behind it.

Here is the picture of my set up:


It is housed on a shelf under my computer in a plastic crate from Wal-mart.

Assemble your tickler file/hanging file folders. To make your own you need a folder for each day of the month numbered 1-31 and 12 folders each with a month of the year written on them. When a bill comes in the mail look at the due date and if it’s due that month then put the bill into the numbered folder about a week before it is due. Example: bill is due August 10 so you would put the bill in the number 4 (August 4) part/folder of the tickler file. If you pay your bills online just write on a piece of paper the name of the bill and stick it in (you can re-use this from month to month).

However if it is a once in awhile bill or a birthday, you would put it in the month part of the tickler file. If it’s a bill you received in August but isn’t due until September then you would place it in the September folder. At the end of every month (I do this a week before the end of the month) you open next month’s folder and place the bills/reminders into the appropriate number slots.

That’s it! The only thing you need to do is remember to check that day’s number folder every morning! It will hold all the items you need to get to that day! Easy peasey!

The hanging file folders I have behind my tickler file have various names and help me stay organized in a lot of other ways. Some of their titles are: To do NOW (needs to be done before I check my tickler file- might be things I didn’t get to the day before), To File (after I pay a bill I place it in here and file it about once a week/every two weeks), I have one for coupons (I check when menu planning), Goals, Awaiting Reply (I use this for rebates I’m waiting to get back, etc.), and Write (this is where I put my blog post Ideas or guest posts I need to get to).

So there you have my organizational tip! Easy and cheap!

Have A Happy Day,