When you’re inspired to get some work done, it is a huge help to
have your desk and supplies organized and ready. Your desk should
be like an airplane cockpit, with everything you need close at
hand. Here are some suggestions for desk organization basics that
will make work less stressful along with a few less obvious ideas
to increase efficiency at your desk.

First, you should have everything you need to do your work
within arm’s reach. Your office chair should be wheeled and should
roll easily to get to the things that are just slightly out of
reach, perhaps a bookcase or your paper storage.

The top of your desk should be fairly clear and clean. A
computer, telephone, a task light and an in-box are three
must-haves. A pad of paper and a pen for notes is also essential,
and for me, a labeler is never far from my desk.

Most of us have a center desk drawer, and this is prime real
estate for often-used supplies. However, it easily can become a
messy catchall. In what should be an active, vital area, there is
usually a good quantity of inessential stuff — in a recent client’s
center drawer I found ancient cough drops, 53 stubby golf course
pencils and 100 expired coupons, all of which made finding things
difficult. 

Clean the center desk drawer out at the end of each week and
limit its contents to several working pens, one or two sharpened
pencils, an eraser, a ruler, a calculator, some Post-Its and
anything else you need regularly in the course of a normal day,
whether that be TUMS, gum or a tape measure.

Other desk drawers or nearby storage should contain extra
printer paper, legal pads, extra pens and pencils, file folders,
stamps, envelopes , etc. Paper clips, binder clips and all sorts of
little items can be corralled in a kitchen utensil organizer or
small plastic drawer organizers that snap together to customize
your drawers.

You shouldn’t have to get up to create, label and put away a
file. If your filing supplies and your file cabinet are within
arm’s reach, you will be so much more likely to handle your filing
quickly rather than let it stack up and become a headache.

Are you always too hot or too cold when you’re working? Keep an
extra sweater on the back of your chair or keep a space heater
close by. One of those on-desk coffee cup warmers could be a handy
addition to the desktop. Also, a full water bottle at the start of
each day should be on everyone’s desk — the brain works best when
well-hydrated.

Think about what each item in your “cockpit” means to you and
ask yourself if it is essential to your ability to do your work or
adds to your work satisfaction.