Welcome to the 30-Day Organize-athon!
In today’s 5 minutes we’re going to express-declutter your desk, den, study, or home office area.
Let’s start.
Day 15: Declutter Your Home Office
Step 1: Grab a large garbage bag.
Step 2: Quickly making your way around your desk, den, study, or home office area, toss these items into the bag as you go:
- School or college notes and texts – unless you just graduated they’re likely to be out of date
- Equipment you don’t use – such as a 2-hole punch if you use 3-ring binders
- Excess stationery you won’t use this decade
- Knickknacks that provide no meaning, beauty or inspiration
- Reading piles you’ll never get to – which, let’s face it, means most reading piles
- Books you’ll never read
- Old computer or software manuals
- Birthday, Christmas and greeting cards – unless they’re genuinely special to you
- Outdated printers, scanners, fax machines (check for disposal info with your local council)
- Defunct phones, computers, cells, PDAs etc. (ditto)
- Abandoned projects and hobbies and the various accompanying supplies, storage containers, etc.
- Old notebooks not needed for reference
- Old lamps, chairs and other equipment in poor condition
- Doubles of staplers, hole punches, scissors, rulers, etc.
- Any item you haven’t used in the past 12 months
- Anything broken, yucky, tatty, or inconsistent with your standards of professionalism, especially if you work from home.
Step 3: Put your bag by the door or take it straight out to the car. (Take it to the tip as soon as you can.)
Step 4: If there’s something genuinely valuable in there, put it into a separate charity store bag. If it doubt, don’t over-analyze – toss it.
And you’re done!
Got an Extra 5 Minutes?
- Return items that don’t belong in the home office area to the proper place – the kids’ bedrooms, the living room, the kitchen, etc.
- Neaten anything else that lives in the home office area.
- Straighten the desk and wipe it down.
- Pop a cushion on the chair to make it more comfortable.
Now don’t you feel like doing some work here?
The 30-Day Organize-athon Mantra
Move fast. Don’t overthink. Let it go!
Leave Your Comment Below…
Pleave your comment below to say you’ve completed today’s task.
See you tomorrow!
[Image by aussiegall]
completed
This was easy since the paperwork was organized 🙂
So now I’ve catched up – done all 15 now 🙂
Done, It took me about 45min to get the desk organized but it was worht it
I still need to file my stacks in the filing cabinet. I will do that today
Task #15 done!
Completed a paper declutter and have bag of shredding. More to do but a very productive 15 mins spent, catch up on weekend!
My home office is currently my diningroom. I have a small, old fashioned desk that I only use to organize paperwork in there and a chest that I use for paper storage. Things get piled on that chest and desk faster than any other piece of furniture in the house. They are nice and tidy now though!
Wow. I seem to keep way to much junk! Feels good to get rid of it all.
My home office is a small computer armoire so it wasn’t overwhelming. Yay! Done!
I’ve been putting this one off – thanks for giving me the push to git r done 🙂
Deliciously DONE!
😮
That one was not so easy. But it is done!
Completed! Took longer than five minutes and I really had to ask myself “Will you really use this reference again?”
Have Had papers and old software that needed to go. Wires that went to things that I have no clue of. 🙂 The rest I orgaized… .put like things together. Thank you! 🙂
This wasn’t a small step, this was a giant leap! Did my 5 minutes plus and made a small dent. I should look at it as being a dent that would not have been made if you hadn’t motivated me. This weekend will require more attention in this area!
Days 8-15 completed.
No home office here, but I do have a desk in the kitchen that needed some attention. Worked for 15 minutes and will go back again this afternoon to work some more there. Thanks.
Done all 8-15!
The “Home Office” is an ongoing task but I love how you get me motivated to start when things seem overwhelming at times. Small steps in the right direction! It’s all good 😉
Done all days 8 to 15!
I’m considering putting a lot of the stuff I’m removing from my house on Ebay or on Barty, ita takes time and patience, but can be usueful. I guess I need a way to organize it all! 🙂
Hi
Well we did nearly 20 minutes tonight and realised that it is a mammoth task for this one
Got a full bag of rubbish out though
Problem is our home office is also my sewing and craft room and anything that doesnt fit anywhere else room
As we finish other projects in this room (like MOTH building in my sewing centre then all that will be neatly put away in its wardrobe
As we finish the craft cupboard that will be all the craft stuff in its own wardrobe/craft centre
At the present moment a lot that belongs in these 2 projects are all over the home office
But at least we have now been given the kick to get motivated to do that room
Saturdays project for the day
Luv Deb
Done…halfway through the challenge and this feels great to be getting so organized. THANK YOU!! 🙂