Got Junk in Your Trunk? by John Willoughby

Everyone has heard of Albert Einstein. That really smart guy with the goofy hair who is famous for deciding that E=MC squared. This is perhaps a little unfair since earlier pictures show him with hair that was a little more normal. Which leads us to wonder whether he simply got too busy to get haircuts later on in life or, as many high school students suspect, advanced physics really does rot your brain.

But I digress. Einstein was one smart guy and he discovered things about time and space. He developed the theory of general relativity and changed science forever. He found out things about expanding time and space and such. However, I think one of his more important observations was that, junk will expand to fill the space allocated to it. He is less known for this one, but it has a lot more practical application for most of us.

Simply stated; this little known equation explains why, no matter how much closet space you have, it will fill up. And if you move to a space with a larger closet, that too will shortly become full. There is no such thing as an empty closet. That would be like a vacuum, and nature abhors a vacuum. Note that Aristotle said that one, not Einstein. Also note that Aristotle had very well maintained hair even later in life.

This equation applies equally well to filing cabinets, I've found. Whereas you always think you can stuff one more pair of shoes in your closet, you are also always sure there is room somehow for one more folder in your filing cabinet. Until one day there isn't.

And this is the point where you have two options. Your first option is to sit down, become unnaturally organized, sort through every piece of paper and decide what is important and what can be safely thrown out. Maybe you are more organized than I am, but this generally has about as much chance of happening as the proverbial pig flying (except in certain insurance TV commercials). Your second option is to collect a bunch of stuff which you may or may not need again some day and haul it off in boxes, bags or old suitcases. Congratulations, you now have junk in your trunk. (Note: this expression has a whole different meaning in pop culture so you probably don't really want to go around telling people that you have junk in your trunk ).

So, where do you put this junky trunk? Basements and attics are great places to put stuff you don't want to throw away because you just might need them again someday. At least, they are great places if you don't need it in one piece given the times that these things wind up getting flooded, burned, or just eaten by mice. Self storage facilities? Better than your basement, but they cost more and can still end up victim to natural disasters (although hopefully not the mice), and if you need something you have to drive back to the storage facility to go find it.

If you are going to spend money taking care of your junky trunks, and if they are worth keeping, than they are worth treating with a tiny bit of respect. So why not consider a company that actually specializes in storing documents? They will come pick it up from you, and even bring it back if you need it. They usually can do things like scan them or shred them as well when the time comes. And they store them in places that provide protection against common disasters (or mice). It doesn't get much easier than that. The only drawback is that they usually insist on having your papers in boxes and not trunks. But as long as you are willing to store your junk (or even your valuable business documents) in a box, they will take care of everything else. You don't have to be Einstein to see how much sense that makes.

LINK:	http://blog.ironmountain.com/2013/service-lines/records-management-and...
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