There’s an old saying, that a messy desk is the sign of a creative mind. That may be so—but messy, uncluttered work spaces don’t necessarily go hand in hand with robust productivity. On the contrary, a cluttered office space can lead to stress, to distraction, to anxiety, and to fatigue—all of which stand between you and getting stuff done.
So if you want to boost your home office productivity, there are some simple, practical things you can do to make that happen, starting now. For starters: Go into your home office space, get rid of all the junk and clutter, and get things straightened out and organized!
Easier said than done? Not at all! Though home office organization can be daunting, approaching the task with a sense of strategy can help you get it done efficiently and systematically.
Below are some steps to consider as you formulate your game plan.
Simple Steps to an Organized Home Office
- The obvious place to start is with your desk. Everything on your desk needs to have a purpose, a reason for being there; a good rule of thumb is that if it’s an item you don’t use more or less every day, or at least once or twice a week, you should remove it from the desk and store it somewhere more permanent. Spend some time sifting through your desktop clutter and really getting it cleaned up.
- Organize your filing cabinets next. Make sure there are folders for everything, and that you don’t have stray papers without homes. The goal is to end with a filing cabinet you can actually use, finding the documents you need quickly and easily.
- Spend some time organizing your tax files, wherever you keep them. Put previous years’ documents in the filing cabinet, in the proper place, and lay this year’s stuff out so that you’ll have it ready to file in a few weeks’ time.
- Consider moving certain items to command centers throughout the house. For example, you may have the schedules of all your family members written out, but does it really make sense to keep these in the office? Putting them on the refrigerator or hanging on the wall near the garage door may be more prudent.
- Seek some creative storage solutions to keep your home office uncluttered. Even something like a kitchen spice rack can be a great addition to your organizational lineup!
An organized home office is possible. All it really takes is some time and some strategy. Spend some time getting your office in shape today, and see what a difference it makes in your focus and your productivity.