Originally, sheets of paper were bound together by punching holes in them and then sewing them together. Because of this, it proved incredibly annoying if you wanted to remove one sheet from your stack. Binder clips were invented to hold papers together without permanently locking them in place. Since their original inception, their design has changed a few times, but they remain largely the same.

While you may only use them for paper organization, the little tools are actually way smarter than that.

Just because these tricks aren’t what the inventors intended, doesn’t mean they are any less valid! So, if you have a couple of extra clips lying around your house or office, give some of these hacks a try.