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To keep productivity levels humming when you work at home, it's important to make home office organization a priority. Many people that work at home, forget how important it is to organize home office space. When you're at home versus a dedicated office space in the outside world, other areas of life can sneak in. So, you have to make home office organization a priority.
If you don't keep your home office organized, the clutter will drain your energy, productivity, as well as your focus. Home office organization is vital, so here are some top home organization tips to help you make your home office an excellent place to work.
- Eliminate Piles
- Toss / File / or Act on Those Papers
- Keep Items You Use Frequently Organized and Within Close Reach
- Avoid Keeping Extra Supplies in the Desk
- Keep Your Business Separate from Your Home
- Maintain Office Organization
Eliminate Piles
First, to organize home office space, you need to start by eliminating all those piles of papers. It's really easy to let things just pile up over time, I know, I'm guilty of it too, and before you know it you barely have room to work.
You can either devote a major block of time to eliminate the paper piles, or break it down into manageable chunks of time. If you decide to break it down, take just a few minutes everyday and those piles will be gone in no time. Fifteen minutes a day to work on those piles is all you need, and before you know it, they'll be gone.
Toss / File / or Act on Those Papers
Home office organization will be a breeze if you toss, file, or act on those papers immediately.
Use this strategy to tackle the paper piles and then any paper that enters your office after you get it organized. So, when you start to organize your home office and you're working through the mounds of paperwork, look at each piece of paper and decide... toss, file, or act on it then and there.
Once you get the piles of papers under control, keep them under control!
As the mail comes in ask yourself if it's something you really need. If not, throw it away. But, if you need to keep papers, then start a good filing system for home office organization to keep everything organized and easily accessible. If the piece of paper requires action like a phone call before filing or tossing, then act on it right away and don't let it sit.
Keep Items You Use Frequently Organized and Within Close Reach
To organize the desk in your home office, you will want to think about what you use on a daily basis and keep it within close reach. Items like pens, pencils, the phone, computer, note pads, etc. usually get used constantly. So, organize whatever you need to grab often and keep this stuff on your desk.
Warning, don't keep too much stuff on your desk, or you won't have room to move and work.
For other items you don't use as frequently like paper clips, markers, extra pens, etc., keep categorized and organized in your desk drawers. Just make sure you keep these things where you can reach them quickly so you don't have to dig around messing everything up to find them.
Avoid Keeping Extra Supplies in the Desk
Do not store extra supplies in your desk. Organize extra supplies on shelving mounted to the wall or book cases. Better yet, hide those supplies in a cabinet so you can close the doors.
I use a really neat Asian style television cabinet that I installed shelves in to store all my extra home office supplies.
Keep Your Business Separate from Your Home
When you work at home, it's really easy to let other things creep into the office... your kid's schoolwork, personal bills, personal mail, etc. Just remember the purpose of your home office and organize it accordingly. Your office is for work stuff and your home is for living, so keep them separate and you won't risk getting distracted.
Maintain Office Organization
If you want to keep your office well organized, then one important home office organization tip is to maintain it. You can't expect to organize it once and then have it stay looking great. You'll have to work organizing into your daily routine.
Keep it simple. Each day you should spend about 10 minutes keeping the office space well organized. Go through the mail and toss, file, or act on it. Throw away things you don't need at the end of the day and reorganize your desk before you quit working.
Write out a "To Do list" at the end of each day. When you walk into your office the next morning, you'll have a handy reminder list of things to work on.
Organizing your home office will help you be at your best. So, to increase productivity and keep you on top of your game, use these simple tips to keep your home office in great shape.
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