5 Items to Remove From Your Desktop

   

Flat surfaces seem to be magnets for piles of miscellaneous items.  Kitchen tables, tops of dressers, that chair in the foyer, and even your desk (!) can accrue "stuff" that really doesn't belong there.  Since it's my mission to help people organize their office spaces, here are 5 simple suggestions to help you get started on yours.
Begin by removing unnecessary items from your desktop, such as:

1. Things you do not use on a daily basis.  Keep the phone, computer, planner, stapler, a couple of pens, etc. but remove the rest.
2. Junk mail.  If you're not in the habit of sorting through your mail on the day you receive it, then get in the habit!  Immediately throw away any ads, coupons, credit card offers you know you won't use.
3. Outdated materials.  This includes notes from seminars or meetings, old brochures, ancient business cards, etc.  Anything with an expiration date that's passed, throw it out!
4. Knick-knacks and other companies' promotional items.  I know, you need the stress ball with your insurance agent's logo on it, but do you really need 6 of them?  I think not.  The ceramic angel you don't want to get rid of because your co-worker gave it to you 2 Christmases ago--remove it from your desktop!  You probably don't even like angels.
5. And finally, trash.  So obvious, I know, but I wouldn't have this on the list if it wasn't happening.  Don't leave empty candy and snack wrappers on your desk.  Throw away the mostly empty Starbucks cup from last week.  Same goes for any half-eaten food (ick.).  Throw the trash away.

Take a moment to really look at your desktop now.  Are there any of the items from the list on it?  A cleared off desktop is a wonderful thing!  There will be less to distract you so you can focus on doing your best at work.  Short on time?  Tackle one of these a day and you'll have a "new" desk in only 5 days!  Get started, and good luck.

5 Quick Tips to Declutter Your Office

Clutter. Ick. How does it appear, and why can't we seem to get rid of it once and for all?  We can!  With these tips and a bit of discipline (try it, it's not so bad), we can learn to control clutter and maintain a neat and orderly office space. 

1. Tackle one small area at a time.  Start with a desk drawer, or even a section of it.  The benefits of starting small are twofold: working on a small space allows you to see results instantly, and the time commitment is minimal.  Ten minutes here and there adds up.
2. Organize when you clean.  Cleaning and organizing are not the same, although the two are sometimes lumped together.  While you're dusting is a great opportunity to toss out or relocate items that are no longer useful to you, or that have strayed from their assigned home.  Putting things where they belong not only helps you get organized, it's less you have to dust around.  Yay!
3. Purchase organizing products only if you know what you're going to use them for.  Yes, I too have been guilty of buying a tool at Office Max not because I really needed it, but because it was so cute!  Stop that.  I have broken myself of this habit, so don't convince yourself that the pretty box with the beach scene will solve your organizing challenges.  The only way to solve them is to declutter your space and implement a system that is simple and logical for you.
4. Don't be shy about using empty wall space or the back of your office door for storage of items you use but don't need to access every day.  Look in office supply stores and online for a myriad of choices in this area.  It's ok to keep items if you use them--this is not clutter, but make sure each item has a permanent home in your office.
5. Set aside time each day to declutter until it's done.  Don't be tempted to dump stuff into a box in the corner of your office in the hopes that you'll get to it soon.  No, you probably won't.  The best way to declutter is to start small (see Tip #1!) and to keep going until you're happy with your space.

 

 

One Reason Why You May Procrastinate

Everybody delays or puts off doing something they dislike at some time or another.  Yes, we procrastinate.  I'm guilty of putting off cleaning up the kitchen.  Every time I turn around, it seems, there are more dishes in the sink, there's stuff on the counter, the dishwasher needs to be unloaded...again??  Luckily, I can make my kids tackle some of this (one of the benefits of having children, I think), so it's not really that bad.  But still I sometimes procrastinate and the mess grows.

One reason people procrastinate is that the task is too big and can seem overwhelming.  People don't know where to start.  "Oh, I think I'll just work on this over here and I'll get to that later", you think to yourself.  But later the task is still overwhelming and is possibly bigger because it's been delayed and has grown.  Solution:  really examine why you've been putting something off.  Is it large and intimidating?  If so, break it down into smaller steps.  Work on doing one step a day or one step a week, depending on what it is.  Don't get discouraged if the small step barely makes a dent, the important thing to keep in mind is that you've begun making progress.  And you're no longer procrastinating!