The home office has slowly become the foundation of the modern day household. We pay the bills, organize recipe files and photo albums and develop calendars and schedules on our computers, and some of us make a living from here. With so many different activities happening here, it’s easy to see how it can easily become the most disorganized and unkempt area of the home. A clean organized desk and home office can save time, stress and even money if we work from home. So if you’re feeling overwhelmed by your messy desk and disorganized office, take a good hard look and see what’s overwhelming your order the most.
Mail is probably the biggest contributing factor to our messy desktops. Get in the habit of dealing with your mail on a daily basis. Toss what you can, place those things that need to be shredded into a shredding bin and shred them once per week, and file the rest away properly. This might also be the time to update your filing system and make folders for current years or months.
Another culprit of office clutter is computer storage media such as CDs, DVDs and floppy disks. Take the time to ensure each is properly labeled and placed in a protective file or case. Categorize and alphabetize them for easy access.
If you have an office area that is commonly used by all family members, it can easily become cluttered with glasses, coffee cups, food wrappers and dirty dishes. Since computer equipment can easily be damaged should something spill on it, it’s probably wise to impose a rule forbidding eating and drinking while using the computer. This would lessen the clutter at the same time. If you spend a considerable amount of time during the day in your office and your office space is large enough, provide for an area far from the computer and other electronic equipment where food and drink can be set without the fear of ruining equipment should a spill occur.
If you utilize a bulletin board, take the time to make sure all the items posted on it are current. If not, take them down and file away or toss. Make sure your calendar is always displaying the current month so you can see the month’s activities and appointments in an easy glance.
Office supplies have a way of easily cluttering up our workspace as well. Take the extra time to clean out and organize desk drawers if necessary and make sure all office supplies have a home other than the top of your desk.
With some forethought, planning and discipline, your home office can become and stay productive, efficient and serene.
Efficiently Organizing your Small Bathroom Makes Big Sense
Small, cramped bathrooms with little space and lots of stuff can present big problems for a busy family. With items strewn across the bathroom countertop with no designated space make it difficult to find that favorite pot of lip gloss, box of dental floss or can of hair mousse when morning routine time is at a minimum. You can conquer this problem with an honest assessment of your bathroom’s contents and some creativity.
First of all, look around your bathroom. If you have products in your bathroom that you didn’t like after the first use, or that someone who previously visited left there and your family doesn’t use, get rid of them. This can be a tough pill to swallow if you focus on the money that you spent on buying it, but if it’s taking up valuable space in your cramped bathroom quarters, it’s costing you more in headaches and stress than it’s worth. You’ll probably be amazed at how much space you can free up by clearing out these unused, unwanted items.
After you’ve cleared these items out, assess what’s left. If there’s a drawer for makeup, but nothing in it is sorted, consider some small boxes or baskets to place them in. Place lipsticks and glosses in one bin, another for makeup compacts, and another for makeup applicators such as brushes and sponges. If there are a lot of hair products, consider using a larger basket to place them in and stored under the sink which can be easily removed and put away each morning.
If you’re in the habit of stocking up on those products you seem to go through quickly such as toilet paper, lotion, or toothpaste, consider storing those in a pantry or linen closet instead of in the bathroom itself. Make sure all family members know where to look for a replacement or refill should they run out.
Most importantly, get your family to agree on using and maintaining the organization system that’s been developed. It’ll do no good to organize only to find things disheveled and unorganized the following week. Ask for input when devising a system, and make sure it’s one that everyone involved can live with.