Greetings! 

It's Wednesday - you are super busy - things have piled up on your desk. 

Reduce stress, and give your creativity and productivity a boost - Give your desk a mid week, mini makeover!

First things first. Let's find our staging area.

A staging area is where we will do our sorting. If you have a home office, you can use the dining table, kitchen table or even your bed if you are in a studio. If you are at the office, you can use a nearby conference table. In a pinch you can always use the floor to do your sorting.

Next, let's clear your desk - create a blank slate.

Before you move things to your staging area, have a look around. See what you can toss, delegate or file right away. Take care of that now.  

Move everything that's left onto your staging area. Take a moment to wipe down your desk and voila, your desk rediscovered. You should be feeling better already. 

Okay - it's time to sort; take inventory see what you've got.

When sorting, use the "quick sort" method, also known as the "rough sort" method. Create categories such as "active projects", "to file", "give away", "bills/mail", "catalogs" and "follow up". Make sure to have a a bag or basket for trash, recycling and shredding by your staging area. You'll also need some folders so you can put things in files on the spot.

Let's put things in their place; the art of an organized desk.

·         Active projects generally live on one of the front corners of the desk,  - use a graduated file sorter to keep them organized and easily accessible.

·         "Follow up" and "to do's" go in the "In Box" - The In Box takes up residence on the other front corner of the desk.

·         Have the office supplies you'll need at your fingertips. Place larger office supplies such as your stapler and tape dispenser front and center for easy reach. Small items like paperclips can go in a desk tray. Click here for a quick checklist of essential office supplies!

·         Items "to be filed" go in a separate basket away from your desk. That's right, not on the desk. A good spot is on your file cabinet, credenza or return.

All that space in the middle? That is prime real estate - where you will do your best work. Keep that area clear and when it starts to get too cluttered, you guessed it, it's time for another mini makeover.

Does your desk need a mini makeover? Give me a call. We'll tackle it together. You'll be amazed at the results!