Spring Cleaning: Easy Office Organization Tips

Entry #3419, April 28, 2014

Your office can often seem like one of the most daunting areas to spring clean. On the one hand it’s extremely important tidy and professional looking. But, on the other, the time you spend there is extremely valuable – odds are you have a million other items to get through on that never-ending to-do list. If this sounds familiar, don’t fret. Follow these easy office organization tips to help you get your space in order and keep it that way. Every office is bound to have a certain amount of clutter – dried-out pens, old takeout menus, overstuffed files. Start cleaning your office by going through everything and getting rid of items you no longer need. Take note reusable office supplies like folders and half-empty notepads that you may be able to repurpose later.

Spring Cleaning: Easy Office Organization Tips  

Get organized this season

Image via: BHG

Spring Cleaning: Easy Office Organization Tips

Create a Workflow Management System:

Businesses thrive on routine. Odds are every time you pick up a new client or case, you follow a similar procedure. Think about what your procedure looks like and write out a list that includes each step. Then, decide which steps need more organization and find a tool to help with that task. Are you always losing papers? Store all your papers in a specific case file and keep all the files in the same place. Do you need to keep track of outgoing and incoming calls? Start a phone log. Do you need to assign tasks and deadlines to others? Create a master calendar that you can update as new tasks come up. Once you decide upon a system, make a commitment to actually use it. Within a few months it will become routine and you’ll never look back.

Create organization with office shelves

Image via: Cas624 – Houzz

Don’t Neglect Your Desktop:

Since so much about office work is now digital, organizing your computer is nearly as important as keeping your space in order. Declutter your desktop by arranging your documents in a series of folders and subfolders. Remember to name each file something clear and unique. Delete files you don’t need and do the same with emails. Then, back up everything on an external hard drive, so that you don’t have to worry about a technology breakdown.

Make a Pending Bin:

One of the easiest ways to feel frazzled at work is by losing track of tasks that you should have followed up on. Create a pending bin to hold all of those items in one place until you complete them. Keep it on the edge of your desk and then every time you make a note to schedule an appointment, return a phone call, or finish filling out a form, put it in your pending bin. The bin will serve as a visual clue that you need to return to these items later.

Organize your desktop at the end of each day to keep things neat.

Image Via: Container Store 

Freshen Up On Your Way Out:

This one is the key to keeping things looking sharp long term. Before you leave the office every day, take five minutes to get things in order. Put away those files you don’t need anymore, move to-do items into your pending bin, clean off the top of your desk. You’ll be surprised how easy it is to get down to work in the morning when you don’t have to dig through a pile of papers.

Some of these suggestions may seem like common sense but, if you stick to them, they will keep your office looking great and running smoothly. There’s no reason not to get started today.

Do you have any essential office organization tips that we didn’t mention here? Let us know in the comments below.