Whether your desk is in your living room, an office, or a cubicle, it helps to have your working area arranged efficiently. Not much can be done if there’s a cluttered mess. Having an organised desk will help you get through the day with all of your essentials close by; that way, you won’t have to stop working as often. Try spending a few hours on a weekend cleaning and organising your desk, and by Monday, you’ll be able to see the top of your desk again. Check out these simple tips to get started, we’ll explain the process.
Furthermore, if you’re thinking about cleaning your office, you may want to read how to spring clean your office, to be sure that nothing is left out.
1. Strategize The Organising
Before cleaning your desk area, remember that you’ll need somewhere to place all your things. So, it may be a good idea to create an organising system.
Try these office organising tools:
- A filing cabinet
- A file rack to hold your current documents
- An inbox that you can use to place assignments, bills, letters, and other documents. This isn’t permanent storage; if a piece of paper has been sitting in your inbox for more than a couple of days, it should be filed or thrown away. You can even have another box for paperwork that needs to be filed.
- An office bin, recycling container, and paper shredder
- Pen and pencil cup holders
2. Clear Your Desk
Remove everything from your desk, and once it’s clear, you can use a cloth to wipe off all the dust. Only put things back that you need daily. After putting your items back onto your desk, you’ll notice that it probably looks different. Don’t forget to vacuum underneath your desk too. Then you can go through all of the items and consider how often they are used. If they are not used at least once a week, you can probably store them somewhere else or throw them away. Once you’ve cleaned and organised the rest of your office, you can look for a home for all of the items and supplies.
3. Organise Your Supplies
It will help to get some office drawer organisers to divide your drawers into multiple compartments for keeping small pieces of paper, business cards, batteries, flash drives, and staples.
Minimising your office supplies will help you reduce most of the clutter on your desk. To keep all the items left over, in one place that you can reach at any time, use transparent plastic boxes for your writing utensils, vertical desk trays, and simple desk organisers with many compartments.
If you already have an office drawer unit, use this opportunity and fill it with your items, bags, and anything else you like. Or, assign space for specific items. Those used more frequently should be placed within reach. Items rarely used shouldn’t be close to your computer and chair.
4. Don’t Display Everything On Your Desk
Be selective when it comes to choosing what items will be displayed on your desk. A potted plant and framed photo should be enough to make your desk, cubicle, or office feel like your space. Be mindful of all the items on your desk and in your office as a whole – too many items can become a distraction. Your workspace should be a reflection of your work ethic.
5. Assign Spaces When Organising
Once you have sorted all of your items, and decided what will stay on your desk, designate specific locations for each item.
6. Organise Cables
If you often trip over cords and wires as soon as you stand up, then they need to be organised. Too many cables underfoot is a tripping hazard and can also pose a fire danger, and of course, make your workspace look more cluttered than it already is.
Reduce the number of cables laying around by putting away any electronic gear you don’t use regularly, or simply not at all. Use wireless devices instead for your mouse, keyboard, and printer, to reduce cable clutter. Another idea is a USB hub – this lets you plug several devices into your computer with just 1 USB cord.
Plug remaining needed cables into a surge-protected power bar to prevent your computer or other equipment from frying during a power surge. Bind the leftover cables with cable ties or clamps so they stay together in one place, then route the wires through a hole in your desk, and be sure that they are all behind your desk and away from open areas where you could trip over them.
7. Invest In A Labeler
A handheld labeller can make your organising efforts a bit easier. By labelling binders, dividers, cabinet doors, and desk drawers, you can easily locate items and quickly place them back in their designated location once they have been used.
8. Make Space For Personal Items
Choose a space by the office door or entrance to store personal items and rubbish. The area should have a shelf or rack to place a tray for documents, a hook for a coat, and a box for extra personal items, like a pair of shoes.
9. Comfort Is Important
We all have our understanding of comfort at the workstation. In general, for comfort at your desk, you may want to do the following:
- Ensure you have a comfortable chair at the height of your computer so that you don’t accidentally curve your spine.
- You may want to wear slippers or indoor shoes to prevent your feet from sweating while you work.
- Let as much natural light in as possible. Sunlight gives your body vitamin D and dopamine, and both work to improve your eyesight and increase productivity.
- Use an air humidifier to keep the air in the room moist, and a diffuser filled with essential oils to make your office smell nice, to boost your efficiency.
- You can also create a playlist with your favourite songs, which should also better your energy and motivate you while working.
10. Wipe It Down At The End Of A Day
You don’t have to deep clean your desk every day, but it’s a good idea to neaten up your workspace in the last few minutes of the day at work. Motivate yourself by doing a 30-day challenge to declutter your desk a little more each day. Whether it’s throwing away read papers or putting away scattered paper clips, the result will shock you. Also, it becomes a pleasure to start the next day off at a fresh, clean desk.
Conclusion
If you can’t execute all of the desk organising tips in one go, you can always commit to one per day. Organising your work area is a great way to stay productive and ensure efficiency throughout the day because it saves time and decreases distractions from your work. So try organising your desk area this weekend, and sticking to the organising tips during the following week, then check to see if all items are still worth keeping for next time.
If you’re short on time and need your office cleaned by a professional, SweepSouth has you covered with professional office cleaning services that you can book at any time.
