Is a publishing professional with more than twenty years of

3. touch It Once
How many times do you pick up the same piece of paper, glance 
at it, scowl, and toss it back on the desk, promising yourself that 
you’ll deal with it later?
Want to find out? Every time you handle a paper, slap a small 
sticker on it or make a pencil mark. After a week of this, gather up 
the clutter on your desk and count the stickers or marks.
Get the picture?
The first time you handle paper—from a one-page memo to a 
500-page report—you should decide what to do with it. Then you 
should do it. Your choices are:
•  Reroute (pass it on to someone else who should have it)
•  Respond (then file it)
•  Read (then file it)
•  Recycle (as in, throw it in the recycle bin)

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