It’s easy for an office to quickly fall into disarray. If you’re not careful, you might be living in a sea of discarded papers, half-empty coffee mugs, and tiny cubicle workspaces. Change all that and give your office the productivity boost it needs with the following tips.
Ditch the Open Floor Plan
One workspace trend that’s quickly fading is the open floor plan. Studies have found that these types of arrangements actually discourage face-to-face communication by as much as 70 percent and make at least 63 percent of employees feel like they don’t have enough quiet space to do their job. Plus, if a worker isn’t very organized, their mess can quickly spill into their coworkers’ space.
However, that doesn’t mean you should revert your office back to a cubicle, either. So what’s a good compromise for optimal organization and workflow?
Try getting some portable cubicle separators or workstation screens so that you can maintain a sense of privacy while still being in the main work area. This lets you stay away from others’ work messes so they don’t affect your organization. And with less noticeable clutter, you should feel more inspired to get work done.
Clear Out Old Junk
If your desk is a repository for old papers and knick-knacks, it’s time to purge.
Get rid of any documents, letters, or other printouts that are no longer needed. And instead of leaving important papers just sitting around, why not put them into folders and tuck them away inside a drawer?
The purge needs to include more than just paper, however. All those kitschy pictures, trinkets, and other little touches you have sitting around are really just adding to the clutter. Keep these to a minimum — a good rule is to have no more than three personal items on your desk.
Put Office Supplies Away
Do you really need to have all your pens, stapler, and other essential items sitting out at all times? Prevent these from becoming a visual distraction by tucking them away inside drawers. While you can keep some items you use a lot sitting out, put the things that aren’t as necessary, such as a hole puncher or highlighter, on the backburner.
Additionally, make sure you keep your supplies organized when rearranging them. Don’t just hurl everything out of sight; rather, use separators and multiple drawers to keep similar items together.
With your own personal office space that’s free of old papers and supplies, you should have no problem being more productive. As a final tip, keep at least a paper-sized space free on your desk so you always have room to review documents and sign papers without digging through mounds of office crud.
Works Cited
Spector, Nicole. “Is an open office plan hindering your productivity? Here’s how to make it work for you.” NBC News. 23 July 2018: https://www.nbcnews.com/better/business/open-office-plan-hindering-your-productivity-here-s-how-make-ncna893586.
Vasel, Kathryn. “Here’s how your desk should be organized.” CNN Business. 2 Feb 2015: https://money.cnn.com/2015/01/30/pf/jobs/desk-organized-tips/index.html.
