The change of seasons is a great time to clean and reorganize, especially in the fall when we naturally start to focus on the last months of the year and to be indoors. Whether the office you're organizing is one for a traditional business, a home office, or something in between, there's no such thing as being too organized or having too many tips, hacks, and tactics to be organized.

What Are the Basics of Office Organization?

You can find a lot of information on how to organize offices, but five fundamental principles go a long way to getting your office in better shape and keeping it that way. 

1. Set up work zones. This includes a dedicated area for scanning and shredding documents, a mailing zone, printing, and so forth.
2. Organizing office supplies is essential. Much like having dedicated areas for specific tasks, so there's no fumbling, having a single area for office supplies, like a supply cabinet, and keeping it organized is a space and time saver. Staff won't have to save as much stuff on or in their desks, and when replacement pens, pads, and such are needed, they can quickly grab what they need and get back to essential tasks.
3. Only touch the paper once, and don't let it touch your desk. Paper is the biggest culprit for office clutter, disorganization, and time waste. For some jobs, an inbox and outbox may be essential, but consider your workflow before placing them on your desk without thinking. Instead, deal with it the minute you receive a piece of paper. If you can sign off and move it further down the task chain, great.

   If it's paper you can't deal with right now or something you need as a reference, digitize the document and electronically file it so it's easy to find and searchable. The “don't let paper touch your desk” principle works with this same “only touch a paper once” concept but adds an inbox, folder, or another container, preferably near the door to your office, so it doesn't become a pile of paper on your desk. Even better, people dropping off documents won't have to interrupt you to do it. This leads to the following principle.

4. Spend 5 minutes a day establishing order. This is how you keep things from piling up and spiraling out of control. If you haven't scanned those documents, do it now. The daily organization is best done at the end of the day, but if another time of day works for you, like first thing when you get into the office, do it then. It'll make you feel accomplished.
5. Have a big trashcan. Not only will it prevent overflowing trashcans, but by being very noticeable, you may be more likely to toss what you no longer need instead of keeping it “just in case.” 

Other Office Organizing Hacks

Want some more ideas to sort out and structure your space? Try these additional organizing hacks.

1. Color code your filing system. Even digital files can often have a color label in many document management systems.
2. Shortcuts are your friends. Instead of having duplicate digital documents for items that could equally fit in more than one place, place the digital copy in the main folder and then create shortcuts to it from the other file locations. This also prevents conflicting versions where one has an update, and the others don't.
3. Use wall space. Walls aren't just for calendars. A vertical inbox, whiteboard, and such can help you stay organized without taking up desk space.
4. Install drawer dividers. Not only will they keep small items from rolling around on your desk, but they'll also help you stay organized.

Let Storage Quarters Help You Get Organized   Are you drowning in paperwork? Let us digitize and then shred or securely store your records, depending upon which applies to your business, the type of document, and its age. We even provide Certificate of Destruction for shredding jobs. Storage Quarters is the expert in document storage, digitization, and shredding. Call Storage Quarters today at (516) 794-7300 to get a free quote or book our services.