Not everyone will be making the great migration back into the traditional office workspace. So many people have discovered the joys of working from home in the last year, it is really no surprise a lot of them are choosing to stay right where they are. Have you decided you are super content to keep working from home? Have you also discovered your home office space needs some attention? Keeping a clean, organized workspace can really improve your productivity and your attitude. Let’s look at how to get your home office organized in 5 easy steps.
Re-establish Boundaries
One of the downsides to working from home is the constant battle of boundaries. This is home but this is also work. Reminding yourself and your housemates to respect your workspace can be difficult. One way you can tell the boundaries are getting blurry is if your workspace has become a dumping ground for other parts of life. Is your kids’ sports equipment piled in the corner? Have you allowed yourself to use the office space as additional storage for random stuff that honestly should be in the attic or garage?
Re-establish your workspace boundaries. The quickest way to do this is to simply go into your home office, and physically remove everything that is not work-related. Even if you must place all of this stuff in another inconvenient space for a short time, this will send a message to your brain that the office is the office. Workspace is workspace. Your workspace is not storage space. This holds true even if your “office” is a desk and chair in the corner of your room. Be sure that isn’t also a place to put your mail or your folded laundry.
As quickly as you can, disperse the items to their proper places. If they are unneeded, get them out of the house and into the trash or into the car for donation.
Purge
Now that you have non-work-related items out, it’s time to take inventory of what is left. Go ahead and tell yourself that you do not need everything that is still in the office. You may need to repeat this to yourself a few times. You do not need everything in your office.
It’s best to start with paper. Papers pile up, and up, and up. Although paper purging is time-consuming, it will really free up a lot of space in your office, your drawers, and your cabinets.
Next, work on books. Be realistic about the books in your office that you actually need. If you can, re-shelve books that you don’t reach for every day in another part of the house (if you really don’t want to part with them). Otherwise, donate them.
Store Smart
It is very important that you establish ways to store smart. Start with stuff you need on a daily basis. This will be materials, documents, office supplies, and whatever else you need to get work done every day. Make a good list of these items. You will want to keep these items close at hand and always in good supply. You can waste a lot of time looking for these items on a daily basis. Keeping these daily items all together and well supplied will maintain your productivity.
Next, organize the stuff you only need weekly, monthly, or occasionally. These do not need to be stored in your immediate daily area.
Last of all, work on storing and organizing things you need to keep, but do not need handy very often. This can include documents, manuals, or other items you are required to keep, but rarely use.
If you need storage bins, baskets, or organizers, make the investment in these items. If it will make you more organized and productive, it is worth the money. You’re saving money on commuting expenses, lunches out, etc. Use that money to make your office functionally work for you.
Decorate
Another great way to keep your workspace clean and organized is to create a space you like being in. A workspace should be welcoming to you. What could you add to make this a space you like coming into and a space you want to take great care of? When we like a space we want to care for it better. When we do not like a space, we kind of don’t care what it looks like, and it ends up getting messy and disorganized very quickly.
Take some time to make your home office attractive and comfortable.
Establish an Opening and Closing Routine
An opening and closing routine can literally be the key to your workspace staying neat and organized. Your opening routine will consist of collecting materials you need for the work of the day. Getting these items visible and ready to go will increase your productivity. Since the items are already neatly stored in your daily supplies, you will be able to locate them quickly.
A closing routine is a truly crucial part of your system. A closing routine will include tasks that help you wrap up your day of work, and re-establish your neat and tidy workspace. This is when you will move documents to their appropriate filing areas. You will discard items that will not be needed any longer. If the day produced any trash, you will completely remove this from the office. If anyone has broken the workspace boundary and brought in non-work related items, you will remove those items and get them to their proper storage area. Set up your area for the next great day of work.
Working from home can have so many perks. Keeping your space clean, attractive, and organized can help you stay productive and motivated.
