Office Organizing Tips

by Emily Brown King

Overview

Whether you work out of an office high-rise in the city or a spare bedroom in your home, your office needs to be clutter-free and organized. A disorganized workspace can make simple tasks time-consuming and tedious. Your productivity will greatly increase if you don't have to spend 10 minutes looking for every note and file that you need. You can also effectively reduce stress if you're not worrying about whose phone calls you need to return and where you saved that important report on your computer.

A cluttered desk is not an efficient use of work space.
Your Desk

The central part of your workspace is most likely your desk, so this is a great place to start. Generally, you want your desk to be pretty clear, so that you're not distracted by other items and tasks. Remove all items from your desk top. The only things that you need on the desk top are a good light source, a container with pens and pencils, a small notebook to jot down phone messages and things that pop into your head and your planner or PDA. Organize everything else into drawers and files. Designate a drawer for office supplies that you use on a daily basis. Photo frames, souvenirs and other novelties don't belong on your desk. Staring at a picture of your family on vacation is not going to get you in the mood to do work. Instead, relegate these items to a special shelf that is out of eyesight when at your desk.

Filing System

A very important aspect of office organization is creating an efficient filing system. Designate one drawer for projects. Create a separate hanging folder for each project and label them. Keep any notes, files, mail and papers relating to that project in its appropriate folder. At the end of each week, go through each folder and throw away anything that you no longer need. When a project is completed, consider moving the completed project to a separate storage space. Designate another drawer in a file cabinet for mail. Open mail immediately and file in folders marked as "needs immediate attention," "waiting for reply" or "waiting to file." This way, if you don't have time to deal with the mail right away, you can at least separate it by priority. Keep a folder of all important receipts, tax information and other financial data.
Storage

You may also need to designate an area for storage. This does not mean stacking up piles of papers, folders and books in a corner of the room. Use a closet or bookshelf to hold boxes of things that you need to keep, but do not use every day. This might include extra office supplies, copies of finished projects and reference materials. Having these items neatly boxed up or in containers and out of view will make your office a more calming and stress-free environment.