Organizing Your Workspace: Bringing the Fun Back to Tidiness
By Laura Donovan
It’s easy to long for the idyllic days of elementary school, when one of life’s only concerns was maintaining a spotless desk and pencil box organizer free of lead markings.
Fast forward fifteen years and you’re a busy, fabulous working woman. And while you have much more suave and sophisticated items on your desk than erasable pens and magenta tubes of Lip Smackers, you can resurrect childhood simplicity by making a squeaky clean desk a priority. There are many benefits to tidiness in the workplace: for one, you’ll dodge the reputation of being the office slob and likely increase your productivity level.
Common complaints excusing away office slobbery include “I work too hard to take the time to clean.” But there’s a paradoxical effect of working hard: if you’re doing it in an organized way, you’ll actually have more time to make sure that your workspace is organized. It becomes a priority, because it makes your productive life easier. Conversely, you may find that during times when you don’t have a lot to do, your space gets messier— because there’s just no reason to keep it organized.
An organized workspace increases your ability to be more productive with less effort
According to a 2010 survey by Brother International Corporation, 87 percent of workers reported feeling less efficient in a messy work area, and 66 percent reported taking up to a half hour a week digging around for lost items. This leads to more than three days and $177 billion in losses a year. That’s a lot of time and money to sacrifice for inanimate objects.
“It’s in the interest of a consumer-facing business to be neat,” Standolyn Robertson, president of the National Association of Professional Organizers said in 2008. “If things look like they’re in disarray, people will make the assumption that you’re in disarray as well.”
At the Levo (League), we recognize that work demands trump desk aesthetics, but would like you to know that a tidy workspace can actually save you time and resources and possibly help you get ahead. Here are some key ways to keep your desk clean.
Invest in filers or folders
Offices everywhere are bursting with loose (and often useless) papers, some of which are too important to float freely. Take a good look at the stack of papers on your desk and put the pieces into a document filer or folder. Your sheets of paper will be secure and clean, and you won’t have to worry about them flying away or wrinkling. Plus, you’ll be able to easily see which are useful and which can go into the shredder.
Purchase post-its
Take charge of your chaotic schedule by writing to-do lists on sticky notes. To avoid clutter and stay consistent, designate one spot on your desk to stick your notes. For a convenient reminder of your tasks, place the post-its beside your computer. Every time you glance away from your laptop screen, you’ll remember what you have to do and get your life together. Post-its are also great for message taking if you answer phones.
Get a pencil pouch or organizer
On your quest to have an immaculate desk, you’re going to need somewhere to store all your pens. Buy a pouch or pencil box to keep your writing utensils in one place. You’ll minimize desk clutter and office pen theft.
Buy a planner
In the event that Gmail goes down again and you lose access to Google calendar, have a classic planner as back-up for jotting down upcoming appointments, staff meeting times, long-term goals, and to-do lists. Keep schedule-related papers in a bound planner so you won’t misplace the really important stuff.
Bring an extra tote bag to work
Dedicated walkers, take note: If you’re tired of traveling to work in stilettos or heels, make the journey in walking shoes and throw them in a tote bag once you get to the office. Don’t be the girl who flings her dripping wet tennis shoes or rain boots on the floor for all to see (guilty!). No one will know you prefer comfort over style if you have a bag on hand, and you’ll keep the area below your desk tidy.
Clean your desk after every meal
Are you among the 62 percent of people who have lunch at the desk? If you catch yourself eating in front of your computer, wipe down the area after you gobble up your food. Check your seat, laptop keys, and desk for crumbs and spillage. To expel everything, clean the desk with Lysol and paper towels. You’ll remove food remnants, and possibly germs. According to a summer Huffington Post piece, your desk may be home to 400 times more bacteria than the average toilet bowl. Yuck. On that note, get some hand wipes for the edge of your desk.
Clean your desk weekly
If you don’t have time to fix up your desk several times a day, you’re not alone. The same Huffington Post story reports that 64 percent of people clean their desks monthly or less. Set a realistic expectation for yourself and try cleaning your workspace once a week. Take everything off the desktop, rub the surface with a dampened cloth, and get all the dust away from your workspace. If you’re a mouth breather, prone to asthma attacks, or a deviated septum victim (guilty again!), you may have an easier time breathing at your desk.
Laura Donovan is an editor and writer for Levo.
