Your environment has a big influence on your productivity and creativity. Home office organisation might feel daunting when looking at mounds of paperwork and clutter.
The way you decorate, the way you manage your paperwork and arrange your belongings can impact on how you feel and how you work in the space you have.
Preparation
Home office organisation starts the night before.
An organised workspace doesn’t always stay that way. By the end of the day, papers, pens, planners, mugs and various odds and ends find their way to your desk.
Take ten minutes at the end of each day to tidy up, recycle any notes you no longer need and put things back in their place. Getting into this habit will save you time the following morning. Trying to arrange your space first thing when your mind is racing with the work ahead and you’re wanting to get started creates more stress and wastes time.
Desk Zoning
This simple technique means you always have the critical things that you need within reach. It’s amazing how much time we can waste just searching for a pen.
Think about creating zones that put objects such as your pens, planner and phone in the easy-to reach zone. Then look at what you only need on an occasional basis and look at putting those away.
The fantastic article on productivity in the print issue volume 1 explains this concept and more in greater detail.
The KonMari method
An organised workspace is one which allows the energy to flow and not only frees you of physical clutter but it can work as a mental declutter as well.
You can Kon Mari your workspace to keep it uncluttered and create an environment you want to spend time in. With an organised workspace, order breeds order, creating a ripple effect spreading to the rest of your life.
A home office that ‘sparks joy’ gives you a sense of wellbeing that can boost your motivation.
The Paperwork Rule
Paperwork is a fact of life and it will keep appearing.
Having a system to keep the bills, letters, junk, receipts and other documents sorted is key to remaining clutter free in the long term. One rule that will keep you from slipping into paperwork chaos is: Only touch a piece of paper once.
From arriving in your home to the filing, binning or actioning, handle the paper once and you’ll rarely have to shift a pile of paper from desk to floor and back to the desk again!
Professional organiser, Laura Williams, shares her system for dealing with paperwork and digital clutter in the Homeworker guide. She goes into the four-step method to tackle existing paperwork and prevent more appearing.
Creative space organisation
We aren’t all fortunate to have an executive-style home office with plenty of space and storage.
Even if your workspace is a small area carved out under the stairs, clever storage solutions can make it easy to stay organised.
Think about maximising your wall space. Using a wall organiser or baskets saves space and keeps items out of reach of little hands if that’s ever an issue.
Console tables can double up as desks but are perfect for small corners or narrow spaces. There are also some flip-down desks, such as this one from made.com, which we featured in The Homeworker magazine.
Read some brilliant tips on how to create a functional home office in any room of your house in The Homeworker guide volume 1.
If you’d like lots more home office organisation ideas and workspace inspiration, The Homeworker magazine includes ideas and products to help you create your dream home workspace.
Dedicated to helping you thrive when you work from home, The Homeworker publishes articles that are designed to keep you healthy, happy, and more productive in work and life.
