One of the most common complaints I hear from people is that the paper clutter in their home drives them crazy more than anything else.

I feel that.

Paper comes into our homes and sometimes it feels difficult to manage.

That’s why I’m a big fan of going digital whenever possible and can’t wait to share with you some of my best hacks for using the Google Suite at home to reduce clutter AND stay organized.

The best part about Google products is that they are free to use! So even if you don’t use Gmail for your main email address, you can still use this to stay organized.

Here’s how I use the different tools in GSuite to organize and get rid of paper clutter.

GOOGLE KEEP - FOR ORGANIZING LISTS & NOTES

Google Keep is a note-taking app in the Google Suite.

My favorite thing about Keep is that it works great as an app, but it streamlines to desktop use as well. You can find both versions here.

At home, I use Keep all the time to stay organized. Since you can share notes with others, you can do things like:

Share a grocery list with your partner so you can both add to it easily.
Create a list of meals for the week. Meal planning is best when it’s EASY! (For a post on all my meal-planning tips, check out my guest post for Maria Wilson here.
Create a weekend to-do list for yourself or your family, and share as needed.

I also used it for all of my in-home client sessions (pre-COVID).

I love that you can take photos in the app that stay connected to the note without taking up room in your photo storage. Once at home, I opened Keep on my desktop, and turned the client notes into a Google Doc; which I immediately saved in my client files. Any photos that were part of that note will stay at the top of the note for easy reference.

GOOGLE CALENDAR - FOR COORDINATING EVENTS AND MANAGING TIME

Google Calendar is my lifeline. I use it for both my home & business to keep my schedule organized.

I share my calendar with my husband for a couple of reasons.

When I was in client homes it was a necessary safety precaution (so someone knew where I was!).

On a weekly basis, it also makes sense so we know when we’re free. I make sure to add family events, birthdays etc., so we both know what events are coming up.

During the work week, I block time on my schedule so I know what I should be working on, and when.

Also, I’ll make sure important reminders are on my calendar (with an email notification added!) to ensure I don’t miss important dates/reminders or deadlines.

No more writing down events on sticky notes and then losing them before you can get it on the family calendar. Just put it right into Google Calendar instead!

GOOGLE DRIVE - THE ORGANIZATIONAL MAMA OF THEM ALL

Google Drive is where productivity happens and your paper clutter management efforts really come together.

At home, I use Google Drive to keep household documents organized.

I have a folder for our dog Hank’s veterinary files, and to keep track of his medical details (now that he’s a bit older - there’s more to keep track of!)

I also have a folder for Household Vendors.

I love it because I just scan business cards and drop them into this file. Gone are the days of keeping a business card on the fridge for months so that it’s not lost. Wrote a note about a quote for a repair? Scan it to the file!

Once you get into the scanning habit, it becomes second nature to scan things and digitally filing them in your Google Drive, instead of shuffling stacks of papers around the house. It’s been great to eliminate these paper piles and because we know where it’s filed online, it’s a much more simplified system!

In business, I use Google Drive daily.

It’s where I keep all my client files, where all the original drafts to my blog posts get started, where I store my photos and scans of documents - everything.

I’ve also been making a conscious effort to reduce inbox clutter by using Google Drive more.

For example, for years I was writing ideas down on paper when they struck, or emailing them to myself and then filing the ideas until I was ready to work on them.

GOOGLE DOCS & SHEETS - FOR KEEPING IMPORTANT INFO HANDY WHENEVER YOU NEED IT

Google Docs and Google Sheets are fantastic for keeping track of important information. They both live within Google Drive, so they’re always handy and easy to access. I use this all the time in my business.

With GSuite, I finally got my “poop in a group” (one of my favorite sayings I got from a friend years ago) and put ALL my business ideas in one spreadsheet.

Each category of idea has its own tab within the spreadsheet:

Power Hour Tasks - Each week I make a list of the things I want to do or implement in my business, from articles to read, or small/mid-side action items to take. I set aside some time to work off this list if I’m able to, but what’s nice is that now I have things in one place. It’s easy to read an article from the list when I have phone time vs. scroll social media aimlessly.

Big Ideas - The big ideas for my business that I may or may not ever implement. They just need to get out of my head, and onto a list. Later, if I need inspiration or a new project, I have all those ideas in one spot, ready to go.

Social Media Ideas - Brainstorming content I think would be fun for Instagram or Facebook.

Blog Post Ideas - Outlining the ideas that I would like to write about.

At home, we use Google Docs to keep track of important info and our short & long-term projects.

A few years ago my husband and I created a few invaluable docs that we now use all the time.

Here are a few examples of the ways it’s made our life easier & less cluttered. All the docs below are shared between my husband and I so we both have access as needed.

One of our important documents is our address list. I originally created it to have electronic access to all our holiday card addresses, and now I use it when I want to reference anyone’s address who’s in our circle, and they’re all in one spot.

I created a monthly reminder doc that we make sure to look at when we create our monthly budget. The first section is for the family/friend birthdays so we make sure to set a reminder, and to budget for any gifts. The second section is for our larger purchases, so we can budget accordingly.

At the beginning of each month, we just reference this doc when determining our budget.

This has proven to be one of the most valuable changes to our routine because we’re not constantly surprised by upcoming events, celebrations or monthly charges. We’re able to build our budget around them. Sure, there will always be surprises, but this really helps us stay within our means.

It’s been so helpful to me that I created a template of this Google Sheet that you can save for YOUR family for free - you can snag your copy here!

There are so many more ways I can see people using Google Suite to stay organized, especially if you have kids!

Shared calendars so both parents are able to see daily activities
Calendars to help your kids stay on top of school deadlines
Scanning items you need to reference from your kids’ schools on Google Drive (monthly class calendar, school letters, extracurriculars, etc.)

There are so many different ways to use GSuite to reduce paper clutter in your life. And because it’s so diverse (and free!), it’s easy to customize to your life and what you need.

To help you get started, here’s one of the Google Docs that helps me stay organized and reduce paper clutter the most. Download this free template of my Monthly Reminders Google Doc to get started setting up your GSuite organizational system.

I hope you find this helpful in streamlining your family routine!