"Organize For Life" Office Organizing Tips

Diane Hatcher of www.timesaversUSA.com offers office-organizing tips to help you on your way to a better organized life in your office, home-office or just your desk in your home. With even some of these small changes you may see an improvement in your productivity, stress level and control over time, space and activities.

As always, tips are only one piece of the puzzle and are not intended to be
a substitute for working individually with a professional organizer. Happy Organizing!

1. Clear your desk of only the most used items, limit to one family photo.

2. Keep only one project on your desk at a time to avoid distractions.

3. When leaving a message for a return phone call, indicate what time is best for you.

4. When writing appointments in your planner, calendar or PDA, indicate applicable phone numbers so they are readily available in case of the need to confirm or cancel.

5. Clean your desktop daily to tie up loose ends, providing a fresh start the next day.

6. Maintaining your level of organization means putting things back where they belong.

7. Answer any mail that can be completed in less than 60 seconds immediately.

8. Respond to correspondence on the original letter you received.

9. "Files, not piles" makes papers easier to locate and helps avoid distractions.

10. Purge files annually. Remove closed or inactive files, before purchasing more file cabinets.

11. Use industry-related retention guidelines to determine what papers need to be kept.

12. Keep supplies handy and available. Make a list when running low and replenish supplies.

13. Minimize the use of sticky notes to temporary information that can be discarded shortly.

14. Use a phone call or a written response, choosing which would be quickest in a situation.

15. Use computer folders to organize email.

16. Delete e-mail without reading it if it looks like spam (unsolicited advertising).

17. Back up all pertinent information on your computer regularly.

18. Organize your desk in stations- computer related, phone related, activity related.

19. Locate your "in-basket" outside your office to avoid interruptions and distractions.

20. Group files into 3-5 broad categories and color code with folders and hanging files.

21. Avoid making files for only one or two pieces of paper. Use broad titles.

22. Make a "miscellaneous" file for papers with only one or two pages associated with it.

23. Keep your to-do lists (daily and master) on your desk rather than keeping files and projects on your desk.

24. 80% of what is filed is never referenced again. Save only what can't be replaced.

25. Hire a professional organizer for systems to organize your desk, paper work and time.

NEED MORE TIPS?

Interested in more organizing tips, articles and products? Check out Timesaver Usa’s website at www.timesaversUSA.com.