Organization is a task that can go many different ways. If you are like me, I love spending an afternoon cleaning out clutter. However, I would venture that most people do not have that same mentality. Organizing requires lots of decision making and a lot of time. It can seem overwhelming when you have a large space to organize. But, if you break it down into smaller projects over the course of a few days you may just grow to like it!
Cleaning is also good for you mentally. It helps you create a more simple living space and get rid of items no longer in use. In the spirit of focusing on one organizational project at a time, let’s talk about the home office. This room can easily become the catch-all for everything. Guests coming over? All misplaced items get thrown into the office and the door shut. At least that’s how it works for me most of the time (but that is just between you and I).
This often presents a problem though because I do not work well surrounded by mess. I need a clean space where I can spread out in order to be productive. Some of us may tolerate clutter better than others, but I would bet that we would all be more efficient in a clean area.
Paperwork is the biggest threat to an office. The best solution is to have a system in place so that you can file away and keep things to a minimum. If you have a printer that can scan to your computer, that is even better! Scan your files onto your hard drive and poof! No more paper.
Moving on, a good rule of thumb is to avoid having large pieces of furniture in your office. This just creates more space to set things down and watch it pile up. It is definitely smart to have a large desk area so that you have room to work. However, leave that as your only large piece in the room. Keep everything else to a minimum.
As always, less is more. If you keep things simple, then you will thrive in your work space. It will allow you to work on the task at hand and not feel overwhelmed with all of the other things around you. I think you will also find that it will keep your stress to a minimum as well. It may take some time to clean up the clutter, but it is well worth it. Happy organizing!