Zap the clutterbug

Office clutter equals mental clutter.

Associate Editor Holly Ann Suzik -- Converting Magazine, 7/1/2001

At the start of the workday, do you look at the state of your office and feel depressed or want to scream? If so, the clutterbug may have stung. Perhaps papers engulf your work area, items are strewn in hard-to-find places, or desk drawers are overstuffed.

Zap the clutterbug with organizational skills and enhance your productivity. No more wasted time searching for that buried sticky note or important file. Instead, start the day with an orderly office and peace of mind.

"It can be psychologically damaging to have a cluttered office," says Barbara Tischler, owner of The Clutter Coach, Wheaton, Ill. She helps people organize their offices and, in turn, soothes their minds. One customer felt emotionally cluttered as a result of his littered office. Tischler could barely tiptoe through the room without knocking down piles of papers, so she boxed up everything and sorted it in another area.

When decluttering, Tischler suggests starting with a blank slate. This means removing items from the area, so you can see what you have. While doing this, sort into categories such as office supplies, papers to file, knick-knacks and to-be-purged.

Define a place for everything, but keep items close to where you use them. For example, computer disks should be near your computer. Also, organize according to frequency of use. Regularly used objects go in easy-to-reach places.

Tischler suggests labeling drawers, containers and files to remember placement of items. For around $30, pick up a labelmaker for professional-looking labels. She recommends the Brother P Touch, Home and Hobby product, found at most office supply stores.

If being organized sounds like a full-time job in itself, put it in perspective. Becoming organized takes time, but staying that way isn't time consuming. "If you can put the time and effort into getting organized, the maintenance isn't that bad," says Tischler. Plus, she comments that people exaggerate how long it takes to become tidy, so they procrastinate.

Whatever it takes, zap the clutterbug!

Contact Barbara Tischler at 630/221-8900, ccoach@enteract.com, or www.thecluttercoach.com.

Has the clutterbug stung? Take this self-assessment quiz

Are stacks, piles, or blankets of paper taking over the surface area of your desk?
Do you have a bulletin board in your office with more than one layer of paper on it?
Do you routinely lose or misplace supplies or paperwork in your office?
Do you often miss business meetings, appointments, or other work-related events because you are not in the habit of looking at your calendar or you do not have a calendar?
Do you often have a hard time finding items that you have recently filed?
Do you have to shuffle through a lot of papers or dig around in your desk drawers to find what you're looking for?
Does your stuff spill over onto your neighbor's workspace?
Do you frequently stare at the same piece of paper over and over again because you can't figure out where to put it?
Do you ever say to yourself, "I'll just put this here 'for now,'" thinking that you will put it where it belongs another time, but that time never comes?
When you enter your office at the start of each workday and look at the state of your office, do you feel depressed or want to scream?

Scoring:

Give yourself one point for each "yes" answer.

1-3 points = You're not overwhelmed with clutter, but there may be a few areas for improvement.

4-5 points = Clutter is becoming a problem.

6+ points = You have a major clutter crisis. You need to get organized ASAP!