Goal two: Clean up your personal space (even if it takes a whole day!)

The best way to feel good about your life is with a clean desk.  Whether you work in an office or from home, you need a neat space to work in.  Otherwise, you’ll find yourself shutting the door or searching aimlessly for important papers because they have disappeared.

I realize that for some people this may take a whole day because you may have forgotten what your desk actually looks like.  Is it wood?  Does it have a glass top?  Is it painted?  You probably don’t even remember because it’s been covered for so long.  I have been there!  This was especially a problem for me when I was teaching.

So how do you begin organizing your desk?  It’s easy to think that file trays will be the answer to your problem.  Or perhaps you just need more drawer space so you can dump the junk there.  Or maybe you need to box it up and put it in the closet.  NO.  THESE ARE NOT THE CORRECT ANSWER!

Your answer: 1.  Get a trash can and/or a paper shredder.  2.  Get a comfy chair.  3.  Turn on some great music that you really enjoy.  4.  Start reading.

That’s right – read every paper on your desk.  Then sort it into piles – many papers will go straight into the trash.  The rest might go into a “client” or “customer” pile or perhaps a “kid artwork” pile.  Make however many piles you need to make to sort the items by relevancy.  THEN, go through and decide how important each paper is in each pile.  You’ll probably find some more things that need to be trashed.

After you’ve gone through the papers, clear off the knick-knacks.  You need one cup for pens and pencils, scissors, and other up-right supplies.  You might need a jar for paperclips (if you don’t have a drawer with space for these).  You might need a calendar.  Other than that, clear it off.  If you are in a cubicle and don’t have anywhere else to display a family picture, then one frame on your desk is good.  (You can always pin or tape up pictures and posters on the walls of your office space to make it more inviting and indicative of who you are and who you love… but keep the desktop space clear.)

Right now we’re in a very, very small space and it’s taught me a LOT about being organized.  My desk is currently Daisy’s dog crate covered in a nice throw blanket.  We put a hard piece of foam board between the top of the crate and the blanket for stability.  If anyone can tell you the importance of keeping a clean desk, it’s me!  SO – whether your desk is large or small, keep it clear of the clutter. 

If you need a space to toss “junk” that you don’t know what to do with, get a basket for that.  I made a mistake in our old house of having a junk closet.  Some people have junk rooms.  Now that I don’t have that option and I only have a junk basket, I’m determined to keep it that way.  KEEP OUT THE CLUTTER!!!  (I’ll have tips and tricks regarding magazines and newspapers in a later entry).

With Spring Break here, use your time to do some “spring cleaning” and to organize your life… you will feel SO good about yourself when you walk into your office and see a clean desk!!

Then, once you get it neat and organized – keep it that way.  It’s hard because day-to-day life enters in… trust me, I know.  It’s easy to let the stacks get piled up.  SO – set aside one morning each week to go through your pile on your desk.  If you keep it cleaned up regularly, you are less likely to lose something important, and you’ll get that great sense of satisfaction when you finish!! :)  You CAN do it!