As things are around us, so are the thoughts in our mind. There are many things that can hinder productivity and work efficiency, one of the most important being the lack of order and cleanliness. When we think of a workspace, we already have the image of offices flooded with computers and assignments, post-it notes with all kinds of emergencies, lists, files, folders and more. Are you tired of not being able to find anything among the dozens of papers that litter your desk? How can you answer the phone when the wire can hardly overcome the stack of files and on the way from the receiver to your ear you also happen to spill your coffee? Some of us are better at handling the amount of work they have to do, others, on the contrary, can’t keep up.
The benefits of a clean workspace are endless. There is no doubt that when clients, visitors and even colleagues step into a dirty office, it leaves the impression of unprofessionalism. What about the experiences we’ve all had when we had to hunt for a missing file or a list of vital information forgotten somewhere and spent precious time looking for it, time we would have been able to use in a much more productive way. Although it may not be so obvious to some, keeping a clean desk at all times will keep you happier because:
1. Reduces stress
Keeping your office clean and organized allows you to keep your stress levels to a minimum. An organized desk helps you keep things organized and more thoughtful, which is a worthy consideration for optimizing and/or maintaining your well-being.
2. Presupposes time saving
If you were to work in a dirty office, you realize that there would be a constant concern for cleanliness, instead of focusing on the work itself. This makes you waste precious time and energy. Working in a clean office is the exact opposite. Keeping a clean desk at all times will increase your ability to focus on the things that really matter, leading to productivity and saving you time to perform tasks that really matter.
3. Improves physical health
Messy offices can become great sources of bacteria. Just think about how much time you spend at work, most of the day to be exact. Working in an unhealthy environment, on a regular basis, is the “perfect” combination to develop many diseases and, consequently, to use the days off (when you could go on vacation for example) as sick leave. Several studies have been carried out on the environment in which people work, after which it has been demonstrated that this is a real focus of infection, with over 500 bacteria.
Regular cleaning will reduce bacteria on various surfaces and increase indoor air quality, leading to a healthy environment. Another important component of office cleanliness is making sure your colleagues are aware of it too. If you want to be one step ahead, you can always have a bottle of disinfectant on hand to use after coming into contact with files, folders, door handles, trash cans, which are full of germs.
4. It helps you make a good impression
Think that appearances don’t matter, and the appearance of your workspace affects the way you are perceived. As a result, you can be considered reliable, conscientious, serious and fair or not.
5. Improves mental health
Working in a clean environment can reduce stress and help you clear your mind for real tasks. It can even help you feel happier, more relaxed, more focused and more satisfied with the work you do.
Physical disorder can lead to mental disorder and vice versa. A tidy space can help you relax, focus better and be more productive. Take a look at the workspace. Is it clean and organized or does it look like after a storm? Some might say that they, in their disorder, know very well where each thing is. But do you really like those piles of papers? This does not mean that you are organized. A clean desk (which can essentially mean empty) increases anyone’s ability to focus, reduces stress, and makes you appear self-possessed and confident in front of colleagues.
Tips & Tricks
Ideally, you should keep 5-10 minutes before the end of working time to tidy up. Work capacity, creativity and health could suffer from an untidy and unhygienic office. If in the morning, when you enter the office, you find disorder and disorganization, do you feel like getting down to work? Doesn’t this make you feel stressed already?
Why start your day like this, when you could enter an elegant, organized, clean and airy atmosphere. And besides that, how do you want to appear in front of your colleagues and boss, productive, organized and neat or exactly the opposite? If you don’t clean today, tomorrow, or the day after, always blaming it on lack of time, you will soon find that you have only added more mess to the already existing one. It is important to treat in the same way the old files on the desktop or the e-mail inbox, as well as the computer keyboard (high germ carrier).
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Try not to eat lunch in the office where you work or, if you have no alternative, protect the desk surface with a napkin. Do not make crumbs and be careful not to spill drinks (tea, coffee). A clean office will greatly reduce the risk of allergies, flu and other diseases.
Believe it or not, according to research, there are times, like starting a big project, when a cluttered office can support creative thinking and help people come up with new ideas. So, if you need unconventional ideas, you can start the project in a slightly messier environment, but always finish it in a flawless one.
Another key element that you should take into account is related to the light source – the desk must be placed so that the light comes from the front or the left side , natural light being preferable, of course.
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Clear the desk of everything you have on it, so you can dust it efficiently, thus noticing much more clearly what objects you really use to put them back in their place. Don’t hesitate to throw away what you don’t need or what is damaged. Sometimes it is almost unbelievable how many useless things we can keep in various containers, folders or mail trays. They crowd our unnecessary space, collect dust and give us a general feeling of clutter.
Keep on your desk only what is of real use to you. You certainly don’t write with 10 pence at once and you don’t need a whole stack of paper or other tools that you use less often and that can also sit in drawers – such as a stapler, hole punch, tea cup. It would be best to have a diary or a notebook where you can quickly write down phone numbers, e-mail addresses or anything else. In this way, you won’t have so many scattered papers and you will later find the information much easier. Place important papers in trays according to priorities.
Also read 50 things you should get rid of right away from your home
To get rid of the problem of the “octopus” of cables that you keep tripping over, it would be good to buy extension cords with grounding and an on-off button so that you can close everything before leaving, saving energy at the same time . Another very practical tip is to tie the cables with special plastic strips, restricting the place they occupy.
Do not throw the papers away with the household waste. And here we are not referring to the food packaging, but to the papers that become useless and that must be directed to special paper shredders or at least to special collection spaces that should exist in every company.
Surely a vase of fresh flowers or the arrangement of a green corner will cheer you up, given that it is proven that looking at and taking care of plants during a break can relax and restore the desire to resume the activity.
Keep something you love on your desk , it can be a family photo or anything else that gives you a moment of melancholy.
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Divide objects into categories. If you want papers and contracts, go to the drawer with papers and contracts, if you want a book, go to the corner with books, and so on. Create a “law” to govern the office, that is, a personal commitment that you make to yourself. For example: “In this office, I won’t have anything that can make me unhappy.” The next time you see stacks of papers on your desk, you’ll know they don’t belong there, and you’ll get rid of them more easily.
And never forget that the office is part of you, of your work, of your life, so honor it with all the attention and care, always remembering the wise saying “Man sanctifies the place!”.
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