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It’s Time to Clean Up Your Desk!
January 13, 2010
Monday, January 11th was “National Clean Up Your Desk Day”, and January is “Get Organized Month” so what better time than right now to start the new year right by taking a look around your office and spending a little time getting yourself and your desk organized. Why? Because getting organized could actually help your career!
In December 2009, MARC research conducted a study for Office Depot to determine how diligent business professionals are about keeping their workspace clutter-free. Here’s what Office Depot’s organizational survey found:
- 30% of respondents report having lost an important document due to a messy desk.
- Disorganization commonly leads to lost time (47%), meeting tardiness (16%), and missed deadlines (14%).
- Food (32%), old newspapers (32%), coffee cups (31%), and spare shoes (12%) were cited as the most likely items to cause workspace clutter.
And if those statistics aren’t enough to help motivate you to clean up you desk and office, check out this statistic: Nearly 60% of survey respondents agree that if someone’s workspace is clean and organized it means they’re on top of things and working hard. Want to project a positive image at work? Then do your best to keep your desk and office organized!
I know…you’re looking around your office at all the clutter and wondering where to start. “Every business professional knows being organized pays dividends, from increased productivity to the satisfaction of being able to actually see past the piles on your desk,” said Laura Leist, President of the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO). “The biggest challenge is know where and how to start as well as finding the motivation to do so.”
Try getting organized with these great tips for office organization from the National Association of Professional Organizers:
- Manage your time: Use some sort of planner to track appointments and tasks and break larger projects down into smaller tasks that can be included in your planner.
- Tame your desk: Don’t keep any supplies on your desk except the ones you use every day; create a streamlined paper flow process for incoming documents and only use your inbox for items you haven’t yet reviewed.
- Supercharge your communication: Write an agenda with goals and objectives before each call you make; keep a record of the follow-up calls you’ll need to make; and, be clear about the response or actions you need completed when working with colleagues.
- Conquer your filing: Create an electronic filing system that mirrors your hard copy system. Keep a master list of all your file names to avoid creating a duplicate file.
To support “National Clean Up Your Desk Day,” Office Depot launched an effort to help business professionals get organized and stay organized in the new year. Be sure to check out their Facebook fan page for resources and tips that will help you get off to a smart start in the new year. And, don’t forget to download the 10% discount coupon they’re providing on the purchase of any organization products.
So come on, it’s the New Year and time to organize your office! You can do it!
~ Lisa Quast
Helpful Links:
NAPO tips for office organization: http://www.napo.net/get_organized/tips/office_organization.aspx
Office Depot Facebook page for resources, tips, and a 10% discount coupon: http://www.facebook.com/OfficeDepot
Topics: Tune into Stats | 3 Comments »
3 Responses to “It’s Time to Clean Up Your Desk!”
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January 14th, 2010 at 4:57 pm
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Revolution PR and ChixChatClub, ChixChatClub. ChixChatClub said: Did U know 1/11/10 was Nat'l Clean up your desk day? It's not too late. Check out these tips & 10% off coupon! http://ow.ly/Wisu [...]
January 25th, 2010 at 1:07 am
Its an amazing post! We usually don’t get time to ponder over such things which are really important but ignored. Thanks!
July 21st, 2010 at 1:57 pm
Great post!
I believe everyone will agree that we can’t function well if our desk is a mess. I’m using a unique memo pad holder to make my notes and documents stay put. Check out http://www.theoriginalfinger.com.