10 Desk Organization Ideas to Boost Productivity
It’s tough to stay focused when there are so many distractions keeping you from doing your job. Whether it’s the water cooler gossip, constant meetings, or that coworker who’s always bringing snacks to the office, you need all the help you can get to stay on task.
One great way to promote productivity is to optimize your desk space. Clutter, poor ergonomics, and other factors can be just as disruptive to your day as the guy in the adjacent cubicle who smacks his gum. Ensure your tiny corner of the business is ready for business with ten tips to help.
Helpful Desk Organization Ideas and Office Organization Ideas
1. Clean Up The Chaos
Too much clutter clouds your mind and slows you down. So naturally, your best first step is getting rid of clutter. Store or scan the documents you need to keep, recycle the rest. Dispose of wrappers and soda cans. Clean that dirty dish and put it away. Anything on or around your desk that distracts you from work shouldn’t be there.
2. Minimize Office Supplies
Over time, it’s easy to accumulate a drawer full of pens, branded giveaway items (“SWAG”), calendars, paper clips, rubber bands, etc. Pair down to only the items you regularly use, and put the rest back in the office supply cabinet.
3. Use a Standing Desk
More and more evidence is showing that it’s not just what’s on your desk that can enhance productivity, but the actual desk itself. More and more health care professionals and companies are choosing standing desks as a way to help squeeze the most out of a workday. A study by Texas A&M University found that standing desks boost worker productivity… and not just by a little. Those in the study who used the standing desks were 23% more productive in the first month, and up to a whopping 53% more productive six months into the study. If you also factor in a wide variety of health-related standing desk benefits, a standing desk is truly an essential part of your workspace optimization.
4. Manage Cords
Whether you realize it or not, that rat’s nest of cables is taking up usable desk space and weighing on your subconscious, making you more easily drained and distracted. There are all kinds of cable organizing systems available. These include the type you can buy at an office supply store, or inexpensive hacks you can perform using items like LEGOS and binder clips. Regardless, you’ll be amazed how much nicer, cleaner, and more professional your desk looks when the cords are neat and tidy.
5. Arrange Thoughtfully
Where you place things on your desk can be as important as what you have on your desk. For example, keep your computer monitor at eye level and a comfortable angle. Place the phone opposite your dominant hand so you can easily take notes. Leave enough empty space for an 8.5" x 11" notepad or paper so you can use your dominant hand to write notes on it.
6. Reserve Space to Manage Incoming Items
Nothing can clutter up a desk faster than incoming paperwork. Make sure to have an “inbox” (like a document tray) to keep paperwork from taking over. As your mother said, “A place for everything and everything in its place.” Approaching your desk with this mindset will keep you consistently organized and productive.
7. Have a Couple of Happy Things
There’s no need to go overboard with the minimalism. Make space for a photo, memento, or decorative piece to help cheer you up when you feel stressed. Just limit it to two or three items maximum. Know your workplace when adding these decorations, selecting items that fit the personality and aesthetic of your company and don’t distract your coworkers.
8. Add Some Green
A plant not only adds visual interest to your work area, it improves your mood, and in turn, your productivity. A recent Exeter University study suggested that plants in the workplace improve memory retention and other important job functions, resulting in an overall productivity increase of about 15%. In addition, plants help filter and oxygenate the air around you, helping you breathe easier.
9. Keep a Water Bottle Within Reach
Make space on or by your desk for a water bottle. No, we didn’t say a soda pop can. Researchers at the University of East London School of Psychology found that drinking water boosts mental performance, helping hydrated workers “concentrate and perform better on mental tests. Dehydration is also a common cause of fatigue during the workday, so keeping a bottle of water at your desk will keep you alert and sharp throughout the day.
10. Reserve a Drawer for Healthy Snacks
Skip the donuts left in the break room, and give away that leftover Halloween candy. In the same way a healthy diet helps athletes achieve peak performance, a supply of snacks that are good for you can help keep you energized, alert, and ready to tackle the next task.
Prepare to be Productive
Having the knowledge is only half the battle—now it’s time to put yourself (and your desk) in a position to be as productive as possible. In addition to these desk organization ideas and office organizaqtion ideas, we suggest you equip your workspace with storage tools to declutter, standing desk converters to improve health, and office accessories to take your work to another level.
