How many times have you desperately been searching through hundreds of emails, looking for one specific piece of information. You know it's there somewhere, but you just can't find it. While you are looking you find loads of really useful stuff you didn't even know you had. As well as loads of crap!

This problem is getting way too common. The information age is drowning us if we don't fight back. To me this used to be a huge problem, but I solved for myself! Now I want to share my system with your, hoping it will prove useful.

The first thing you need to do is figure out a system that works for you. I will give you some ideas about filing, but if this is going to work, you need to find a filing system that is logical to YOU. To start with here is what I suggest. You can modify idea for yourself later.

I will assume your email software lets you create folders. Most people these days are using Outlook or a similar software. I you don't have such a program then you need to save your important emails to a folder-tree on your desktop.

First create a folder for following: 'private' and 'work'. Inside these folders create subfolders. I suggest for 'work': 'to do', 'to read', 'to save', 'to use' and 'check later'.

For private I suggest you create one folder named 'family' and one named 'friends'. And possibly one for whatever hobby you are in to. You get idea.

Before starting an ad sheet, you should plan it all out - decide on an interesting, informative title, choose a masthead, lay out your columns for size, determine if it is to be a simple 8 1/2 x 11 single sheet of paper or an 11 x 17 sheet folded in half. You'll also need to know your production cost for number you intend to have printed, and post age cost to mail them out.

Most ad sheets start out as single sheets of paper, 8 1/2 x 11, printed on both sides. Usually, front side is divided into three equal columns about 2% inches wide, with a inch margin from edge of paper on both sides and top and bottom.

Assuming that space occupied by your title, masthead and listing of rates for advertisers interested in placing an ad with you is two inches deep, this leaves you about 24 inches of advertising space to sell on front side. Figuring a cost of $50 for 1,000 copies of such an ad sheet, printed both sides, and a third-class bulk-rate postage of $110, this means that your 24 inches of ad space will have to be sold at a rate of $6.25 each in order to break even. This means: You h ave to sell all of ad space on front of your ad sheet at $6.25 Per ad - and then expect to make your profits from sale of back side of your ad sheet. Actually, it would be feasible to charge $7.00 per inch for space on front side, and carry your own full page ad on back side. At any rate, don't box yourself into a loss situation where you can't afford to place your own ads in your ad sheet.

You get ads by making up an advertising solicitation sales letter and sending it out to as many mail order dealers as you can find. You can also run ads in other people's publications, inviting readers to check with you regarding placement of an ad in your publication. And of course, you'll be wanting to work out some exchange advertising deals (whereby another publisher runs your ad in his publication, and you run his in exchange). From experience of many, many publishers, this can be one of most effective ways of getting your ads run, at low/no cost, and it is recognized to be successful in field of Mail Order.