by Judy Pedraza

Created on: May 22, 2010

A disorganized office can cause a lot of problems. Important documents may get lost leading to irate customers/clients and loss of profits. Keeping your work area in order can help your day go more smoothly. Here are a few tips to get you started.

Start or organize a file system- Every office needs a neat and orderly place to store customer records, employee files and other important documents. Be sure it is arranged in a logical way that makes sense for your business.

Clean off your desk- Now that you have a place for all your paperwork you can get it off your desk. Throw away or archive any outdated records and file the rest.

Get some bins- You should have a bin on you desk for incoming mail/paperwork and one for outgoing mail/paperwork. You may want to have more depending on how many types of projects you work on. This will help you keep track of the items you still need to work on and the ones you are done with. You will be able to concentrate better if the only papers in the middle of your desk are the ones you are currently working on.

Put your drawers in order- The best way to arrange your desk drawer is to use an inexpensive plastic drawer divider. You can find this at any office supply store. If all of your supplies have their own little space you will have no problem finding them.

Labels make it easier- You should get a label maker or print out labels from your computer. Then you should make sure to put them on just about everything. For instance if you’ve had a long day you may not remember your in box from your out box, but if they are clearly labeled you will not have that problem. You should especially be sure to clearly label all files and archives. These tags are crucial because there is no use getting organized if you still cannot find what you need quickly.

Take care of mail right away- Go through your mail as soon as you can. If you take a minute to quickly throw away junk mail and put the ones that need more attention back in your in box, it will greatly cut back on the amount of clutter on you desk.

Being organized can take some time and effort, but it is well worth it. If everything is right where it is supposed to be, your workday will go a lot smoother and stress free.

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