Business Cards - They Mate

I've been suspicious of it for a while now, but I think that business cards mate when you're not keeping up on them. They get bored just laying in a drawer, in a pile, not being used, never referenced. You have to clean them out once in a while or they will overrun your desk!

You have good intentions when you collect them. "Oh, she seems so nice, I love this bakery, he was helpful, I want to try this handyman sometime", you know the reasons. It really gets out of control if you are a networker and go to lots of functions. You honestly believe at the time that you'll get back in touch with the financial advisor you met and liked or that you may want to recommend the closet designer that was there. Like all of us, you have good intentions but they're just pieces of paper unless you actually do something with them.

There are a few ways you can go. Buy a binder and a pack of dividers. Label your dividers with the major categories of cards such as Health, Home Resources, Restaurants, Friends or whatever pertains to your life. Behind each divider, put a few plastic pages of business card holders. You can also get the slim brochure size holders but then there is no categorizing them so I use different holders for different reasons. I have one that is just people that are in my business networking group or people that I have met through it. I have another that is just resources that I use such as handymen, painters, accountants, and other kinds of people that I recommend to my clients. I keep both of those in my car.

Then in my office, I have one that's full of industry specific cards that are only meaningful to me and another of duplicate cards of what I keep in the car. And YES, I clean them all out every few months. It only takes about 30 minutes to clean out all four and it's worth the time. I still have cards from 4 to 5 years also that I've never used but still want. Others I can't remember or don't care so I toss them.

The secret is to write on the front of the card when and how you met this person. "Antique show 2004" is good enough, that way when you're cleaning them out, you'll know why you even have the card.

I see people with hundreds and hundreds of cards in piles with no rhyme or reason to them. Do you think they would ever go through all those looking for someone in particular? What's the point in keeping them if they aren't even useful? Make them useful by tending to them and using them. That's what they're for!

Jan Davis
www.ClutterBye.com