Let’s be honest, most of us can describe our workspace and the desk we work at with one word. No, that word isn’t clean or organized, or you wouldn’t be here. The word you’re thinking of is – messy. There is no other way to describe a cluttered workspace. Some call it creative chaos, but those people are just not willing to own up to their mess. Now, what can we do about it? We can all agree that a messy work environment is not really an ideal setting to be productive. Well, luckily for you, we’ve gone out, did a little digging and found out 10 best ways to de-clutter your workspace and become more productive. Let’s check them out.
1. Sort The Items In The Cabinets
Now, if you’re in an office, a desk is just a part of your workspace. Before moving on to the other things, you need a good plan. Create a list of things you need to add, remove or sort and go step by step. You can create a flowchart so it’s easier to track the process. It will be especially useful if when sorting through cabinets and folders. With apps like www.zenflowchart.com, you can at least be certain that the flowchart creation won’t be a hassle.
2. Remove Everything From The Desk
Let us start with the basics. The first thing you need to do is to take everything from your desk and move it someplace else. The same thing you do with your clothes – move it from the chair to the bed and vice versa. Only this time, we’re going to end the loop. Once everything is removed from the desk, we can move on with or de-cluttering process.
3. Clean The Desk
Now that you’ve removed everything from it, it’s time to clean. Grab a cloth and a cleaning product and start wiping. Clean the board, the drawers, wipe your monitor or a laptop if you’ve left it on the desk and whatever else that you might’ve left on there. Once everything is squeaky clean, you can move on to the rest of the workspace. Highly touched items like computer keyboards and phones should be disinfected properly with disinfectant wipes. According to a janitorial services provider, it’s best to let the disinfectant air dry on its own rather than wiping the item dry.
4. Vacuum & Toss The Trash
Next up, you’re going to take a vacuum and just do a little bit of cleaning. It’s therapeutic and good for your mood. Once the whole room is clean, it’s time to throw the trash out. We’re not talking about emptying the trash can, no, we’re talking about that pile of rubbish you’ve removed from your desk. Start by sorting through things you’ve taken off your desk and just throw away anything you don’t have any use from.
5. Configure Your Desk
Think about what you do when you’re actually working. Are you digging through papers and the file cabinet? Are you on your phone or are you operating solely from a computer? Once you do that, you’ll be able to visualise your workspace and have a better idea on what you need to have at an arm’s length and what can end up on a shelf or in a cabinet. However, don’t just put everything in a drawer or a cabinet – it still counts as clutter even if you don’t see it all the time. After you’ve envisioned an ideal desk set-up – set it up. Place your phone, laptop, papers, office supplies and everything else you use frequently in the right place. By the time you’re done with this, your workspace is already a lot more clutter-free.
6. Ease Off The Books
One of the most common things found in offices are shelves filled with books. Reading is a healthy habit and every successful person has read plenty of books, but, unless you’re using them on regular basis, they don’t belong in an office. A couple of books on the shelf can look good, but unless you’re in a library, they shouldn’t be there. If you were to free up that space and have it filled with binders with work-related papers, you’d have much less paper on your desk and your workspace would be better organized. The more organized space is – more productive and efficient you are.
7. Organize Your Digital Files
The physical workspace isn’t the only thing that can get cluttered, digital files can also be messy. Keep things properly named and sorted into fitting folders. You can sort by category, date or whatever you feel will suit you best and make you more efficient in what you do. Don’t just save files on your desktop and name them by slapping your keyboard twice. You’ll certainly notice the difference in efficiency and productivity when you start organizing your digital files.
8. Light Up Your Office
Now that you’ve removed all the unnecessary things from your office, it’s time to focus on boosting productivity. Now, the obvious trick would be coffee, but we’re not talking about that. A great way to stay motivated, efficient and productive is to work in a well-lit environment. If your office has large windows, you’re lucky. Don’t lower the curtains, let the light in. it’s been proved that people perform significantly better when in a well-lit environment. If you don’t have natural light, table and floor lamps can also be a great add on. They are both stylish and useful, so it’s a win-win situation.
9. Add Plants
For most of this article, we’ve focused on getting rid of things and now the tables have turned. Greenery has always been a nice touch to any room. They’re especially useful in the professional environments, or at least that’s what numerous studies suggest. It’s that they have a significant impact on productivity and happiness. Either way, they can’t hurt and they look beautiful and we all know how beauty can motivate us.
10. Don’t Eat on Your Desk
Our final piece of advice would be not to eat at your desk. Not only will you get crumbs all over the desk, multitasking while eating isn’t something you should do. On one hand, you’ll do a subpar job and on the other, you’ll eat way more than you should if you stay focused on work and not on your plate.
Now, you don’t have to convert to minimalism and just have a chair, desk, computer and a lonely succulent in the corner of your office. You can decorate the workplace however you want, just remember – keep it organized.
