Have you ever been frustrated by the piles and piles of paperwork in your office? How about finding a specific document on your computer or in your filing cabinet for your big presentation? Have you ever dreaded going to work because office organization is on your forever to-do list?

Today, we are going to break office organization down into a few simple steps and help you find the time on your calendar to maintain your physical and digital spaces for every type of working relationship, whether you work in an office-style setting with co-workers, are a solopreneur, or are an entrepreneur with a team, or need to wrangle your home office and bring it back to working order.

Without sugarcoating and making you read through this post, I will give you the number one answer to help your office be dialed in, organized, and streamlined. Maintenance.

Maintenance.

I know you must be thinking - the cart is before the horse. This is just the beginning. A neat work environment is made up of systems. At the end of this, you should be able to tidy up and reset your space in 15 minutes or less. Throughout this article, we will be touching on a few discussion topics to understand more of the reason behind the clutter or mess, what supplies you need to get started right away, what organizing supplies we love to incorporate when we organize an office, and discussing different ways to manage physical paper versus digital documents.

Reflection

Identifying why your office/workspace looks the way it does provides context and awareness to implement preventative measures in the future. It could be that you received a promotion at work and had an influx of responsibilities. If you know you will be promoted in 2 months, writing out all the steps you need to take to get yourself organized and tidied up before then would benefit you. Maybe a big project came through, and you were working extra hours. You might want to consider asking a colleague to help you with your current task list or delegate some of your project tasks to reach your goal. Maybe you moved offices and immediately started working. Blocking out time on your calendar to organize increases optimal productivity and results. Home life is bananas, and you don't have the brain space or energy to reimagine your space. You are asking a friend, family member, or an organized colleague to help you reimagine your office.

Assessment

Whether you are working with a local professional organizer or want to tackle your office organization independently, taking time to assess the situation is essential. Grab a pen and paper and write down answers to the following questions. Survey your space and sketch out large furniture in the room. Consider what space you have and what piles you see. As professional organizers, when we are asked to help you assess your space, we look for trends and habits and ask the following questions:

What needs to be fixed for you in your office?
What is working well for you?
What do you feel like has caused the disorganization to happen?
How often do you find yourself needing to overhaul your workspace?
Who uses your workspace?
Are you anticipating acquiring more items, or are you looking to downsize?
When you organize your workspace, how long can you focus to put it back together?
How long has it been disorganized?
Can anything be delegated to another person or an assistant?
When was the last time you used this item?
What is your overall goal for your space?
How do you want to feel?
What would you love to incorporate into your space that brings you joy?

Before we get into supplies, every organizer in the world will tell you one thing on repeat. "Less is more." Having fewer items to maintain will result in more time on your schedule. If you can let go of the physical items that do not serve you now or have not been serving you in the past, it will undoubtedly give you more space and time to focus on things that matter more. We say things because we understand that sometimes, getting organized requires bringing in storage solutions to help you maintain your space.

Like this desk, for example: (Jennifer Curtis) The inside of this desk is easy to maintain for our client because we created categories for the client. If you feel overwhelmed by your space and need help figuring out where to start your organizing journey, here are a few items to gather before you begin.

Office Organizing Start-Up Kit

Trash Bin - Trash
Shredder/ Box - Sensitive documents
Manila/Hanging File Folders - Pack of 25 is great to start
Post it notes - to help identify piles you will create
Notebook - Creating a list of actionable items and a purchase list
Stapler/ Paper clips - Corralling documents together
A Visual Timer
Pen/Pencil

Get all of these items on our Office Organizing Essentials List.

Now that you have assessed your space, reflected, and decided what you want it to be, it's time to dig into those piles.

Office Organizing Process

Step 1: Sorting

If you have multiple piles of the same category spread throughout, set your visual timer for 15-30 minutes and do an initial sort and categorization, putting 'like' things together. Depending on how many layers and categories you need, this process may take several passes. If you have items in two of the same categories, consider making a broader category so the two categories will remain close to one another—for example, copy paper near the copy machine or a file sorter where your mail comes in.

Step 2: Editing

Once you have everything sorted into their respective categories, look at the quantities of duplicate items, consider tossing items that you have multiples of if it makes sense, and discard any damaged, broken, or unusable items. The same thing goes with paperwork. Ask yourself, is it relevant? Do you need the information? Can you digitize the physical copy and reference it when you need it? We will be touching on digital organization later on. This, too, might take several rounds to get through the piles. The best time to organize is when you feel energized and clear-headed. If you are stressed in any way, consider making time on a different day where you can focus your energy to make executive decisions. If it seems overwhelming at any point, consider asking for help.

Step 3: Compartmentalizing the chaos

When you are finished editing and see that you have more items than space, consider what additional storage solutions you can incorporate. We love a suitable container just as much as the next organizer, but only if it serves a genuine purpose. Containment must make sense for the item and the space, be user-friendly, and offer an aesthetically pleasing view. For example, during the assessment phase, if you know it's hard to put a lid back on a bin containing items, consider choosing an open container rather than a closed one.

Office Organizing Supplies

Here are some of our favorite office organizing items we have used:

Pen Holder
Shelving unit
Desk organizers
Plants/Candle
Cork Board
Calendar
Portable Filing Bin
Mail Sorter
THE Office Drawer Organizers
Book Ends
Post it holder
Bins and Baskets
Cord Organizer
Wall Storage
External Storage (Rattan/White)
Comfy Chair
Laptop Riser

Organization for Nomads

If you are a remote/nomad worker, your office is most likely in a bag or car. Here are the essentials for office organization on the road.

Workbag
Pen/Pencil Organizer
Hand Sanitizer
Back up battery
Water bottle
Stasher snack bags
Notebook
Velcro Straps
Earbuds
Electric Hot Coffee Mug
Calendar
Lap Top Stand
Expandable File Organizer

If you are looking for a local co-working space and you are in the WNC area, check out Focal Point Co-working.

Labeling

Success in an organization is when you establish homes for your items and routinely put them back in their designated areas without additional thought. Creating habits is more easily obtained if items have a label on them. If you need a reminder, files, bins, baskets, and even shelves can have inconspicuous labels to help train your brain to put things back where they belong. Our favorite label maker, the Brother P Touch cube, is essential for every workplace, whether you are working from home or in a permanent location.

We are back to where we started in your organizing journey. Systems will never remain the same if they are not maintained. You can only expect your office to stay in order at certain times. Items enter into our lives daily. It's up to you to consistently cull and let items go. The in-one-out method is a great practice to incorporate into your workflow. You are putting time on your calendar, weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly, to review and cull.

Paper Organization

Before we end our time together, we wanted to chat about the paper organization and digital documentation organization. Never have I ever organized an office that does not have some paper organization needs. Organizing your paperwork is one of the top requests when clients hire us to organize their home or small business offices. With a few exceptions, if you can digitize the physical copy and reference at least two backups of the document, let the physical paper go. Here are a few categories to consider if you are in the beginning stages of overhauling your paper organization. Always consult your CPA and Business Lawyer for the most up-to-date information.

Business Document Categories

Receipts January (Year) - December (Year)
Bank Statements
EIN
Business License
Insurance
Workman's Compensation
Client Contracts
Team Member Contracts
Hiring and Supporting Government Documents
Time Sheets
Performance Reviews
Tax Documents
Financial Reports
Marketing Materials
Calendars, physical and digital
Meeting Notes
Team Member Documentation
Training Records
Photo Documentation

Personal Document Categories

Health Insurance
Pet Health Records
Child Health Records
Car Insurance
Financial Records
Retirement Records

Toss Immediately

Mailers
Advertisements
Bills are paid automatically and not related to taxes

Keep for Three to Seven Years

Tax Documents

Keep Permanently

Health Documents
Deeds
Wills
Power of Attorney
Birth Certificate
Passports
Vet Records
Trusts
Vehicle Titles
Leasing Information

As much as you can of these documents, you can make them digital. Could you do it? You will thank yourself! We love Google Drive drop box. We appreciate this visual representation of how to organize your digital files from Microsoft. Google Drive takes the cake for its scanning capabilities. If you are a business owner and you've established your filing system, it will save you so much time if you scan your receipts and supporting documents. We recommend beefing up your security if you upload your information to any online platform.

There is not one organizational method that fits every personality. It comes down to deciding how much time you want to invest in maintaining your office, documentation, and paperwork. If your answer is 15 minutes or less, establishing a simple daily routine will benefit you the most. Reducing quantities of any category will also help you maintain your space. Trying your best to prepare for schedule changes and anticipating any influx of responsibilities and increased volume of items will define your capacity so you can comfortably ask for help if needed.

About Green Mountain Space.
We are a professional organizing company serving WNC businesses and residents. Our team offers judgement free hands-on organizing and virtual organizing services. Our collaborative approach ensure you are discovering the best organizing methods for you to easily maintain. If you workspace is overwhelming you and you don’t know where to start or you just need an extra set of hands to help you get it back to working order. Schedule a complimentary consultation today.

Office Organizing 101