Free Tips to Organise Your Desk

Thank you for visiting the Paperwork Genie website.  The Free Tips below will help you conquer those paper piles once and for all, step by step, page by page. To gain more detail on our fees for organisational tasks or computer tuition, please click the “Services” page.

Step One:
Gather all the papers on your desk or workspace and perform a general sort and purge. Do not read the items; just get rid of newspapers, empty envelopes, old catalogues, magazines, etc.

Step Two:
Deal with the remaining papers you have from this process. No matter how much of a backlog you have, begin by devising a system for these relatively new papers.

Step Three:
Handle each paper ONCE! Read the paper and decide immediately what to do with it.

Step Four:
Act on your decision – sign it, post it, fax it, forward it, file it or trash it - but don’t put it onto a pile. If you do, you will have to read it again and deal with it again.

Step Five:
Take control of your time - Do not get distracted form your task. If you think of something else you need to do, write it down on a ‘To Do’ list or a master list in your desk diary. Lists are effective tools for accomplishing tasks. Do not rely on your memory.

Step Six:
Once you have cleared your new papers in a systematic way, start on the older office files and process each sheet through your newly devised system.

Step Seven:
Take the time to purge all unnecessary paperwork and other materials BEFORE you consider purchasing extra storage. At this stage cardboard boxes will do the job.

Papers that you are keeping are either Active or archived for Reference.

Active papers will need to be in an easy to access location, such as:

• Bills to pay - need to be clipped together in ‘payment date’ order

• Outgoing mail - belongs in your purse or on your car seat for the next time you leave the house

• ‘To do’ list - should be written in your desk diary

• Papers for other family members to sign and/or return, need to be put in a location that is ‘in their face”.

Reference papers (for example, last year’s tax return records) can be stored away from your desk in an archival container that can be stored in another room or the garage, but the container needs to be labelled. Once the established ‘shelf life’ for a file or container is reached, trash it or shred it because it is no longer relevant.

Step Eight:
Once you have conquered ALL the paper piles, consider your storage solutions. With all the sorting and purging you may have ‘found space’ in your home office. Your old reference files can be housed elsewhere in the house if needed.

Step Nine:
De-clutter your desktop of everything else that remains. Completely empty the work area and clean it. Now empty the drawers that are filled with office accessories. Only return necessary and functioning items. Use a drawer organiser for pens, highlighters, paperclips, etc. to keep them sorted for quick retrieval.

Step Ten:
Put things away each day. - You should have a workspace that is comfortable, practical and well equipped for performing your daily office tasks, so continue to keep your desk clean and ready for productive work. Keep only the items that relate to your current projects on your desk.

Step Eleven:
Sort the mail daily and immediately throw away what you do not need. Write down what you need to do and group similar tasks on your ‘To Do’ list, enabling you to be time efficient.

Step Twelve:
Congratulate yourself on your organising successes!
Consider if you are organised…………..

If you can ……….

• locate everything you need, when you need it and

• get everything done by the due date

                ……. Then you are organised!!!!

If you have any questions or comments or would like to set up an appointment time, please go to the “Contact Us” page. Fill in the form and press the ‘Submit’ button.