What to Do with All Those Magazines

I have a lot of interests and I enjoy getting magazines related to them. I love it when I finally get some time to read them, but they seem to pile up faster than I can keep up with them. What do you do to prevent the piles?

-Susan from Westbrook

I would put the question "What do I do about magazines?" in the top three that I get asked by people every time they hear I am a professional organizer. I often refer to magazines as a pile of guilt. We are guilty because we have no time to read them. We are guilty because they represent wasted money sitting on the floor. And, we are guilty because we feel we are missing out on useful information. Here are eight ways to let go of the guilt associated with magazines.

1) Decide which ones that you enjoy reading the most and cancel the rest of the subscriptions. You can always buy them individually or take them out of the library when you feel the urge to read an issue.

2) Start new this month. Even if you haven't read the magazines in the piles growing around your house, put them in the recycle bin and start fresh without the guilt of what you don't have time to read. Make a rule to keep no more than two months' worth of back issues. As soon as the new one comes in get rid of the oldest one. I promise you, you won't miss a life-changing article. There are always new ones to come!

3) Cut out the articles that interest you for future reference, but be very discriminating. Making a new collection of information to constantly sort and keep up with is going to be counterproductive to your original goal of simplifying. If you like to keep lots of tear outs, consider scanning them into the computer or pasting them into a sketchbook or scrapbook for quick visual retrieval.

4) Subscribe to your favorite newsletters and magazines on a Kindle, iPad, or Nook if they are available electronically. These electronic reading devices make it easy to read many books and magazines without having a piece of paper in your home or office. You can archive and bookmark items to reread later. If you're ready to go paperless, you'll love these devices.

5) Trade magazines with friends. If you both like reading the same ones you can each save money by sharing subscriptions and in the process force yourself to read them and pass them on faster.

6) You are more likely to read a magazine if it's placed in a location where you like to read. If you do a lot of reading in the bathroom, have a small basket tucked away nearby. If you're a bedtime reader, have a spot for incoming magazines. However, to prevent a pileup, be sure to remove them once they're read.

7) If you're having trouble letting go of your magazines because you want them to be of use to someone else, bring them to your doctor's office, your auto mechanic, or your hair salon and leave them behind. Someone is sure to enjoy them when they're bored in the waiting room.

8) Complete a reality check with yourself. If you're constantly bringing in magazines, subscribing to them because they were a free bonus, and taking them from friends but never touching them, maybe you don't really enjoy them, but enjoy the idea of having them. It is okay to let go of the idea of reading them. As I said earlier, you won't miss anything earth shattering. And if you do, you surely will be able to get a copy of the article on the Internet.

Let me add just one more note-if you liked the advice in this column, don't clip it and add more paper. My archive of articles can be found on my website and Zip06.com for inspiration any time you need it.

Kristin Mastromarino is a professional organizer and owner of Livable Solutions Professional Organizing and The Organized Lifestyle retail store in Guilford (www.theorganizedlifestylestore.com). You can email her your questions at kristin@livablesolutions.com.