12 tips for spring-cleaning your workspace with ease
Having clean workspace helps you be more organized, productive
It's difficult to be productive in a messy workplace. A clean workspace helps to provide for a clean mind, where you can let your creativity flow and keep productivity high.
When the birds start chirping and the flowers start blooming, it's time for cleaning. Many use spring as a time for a fresh start, so why not give your office a refresh, too?
If you want to spring-clean your office this season, follow these tips for decluttering.
Take time this spring to tidy up your office space. (iStock)
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- Separate your paperwork
- Empty everything
- Make decisions about junk items
- Scrub, scrub, scrub
- Decide on what makes a happy workspace
- Keep only necessities visible
- Get rid of those sticky notes
- Ask yourself if you really need that
- Do a digital sweep
- Tidy up around your work area
- Make cleaning fun
- Vacuum your space
1. Separate your paperwork
You're probably holding onto a stack or two of unnecessary papers either in your working view or hidden somewhere in drawers.
When spring-cleaning your office, grab every single piece of paper you have in your workspace and put it in one big pile and go through it all.
To do this, create three piles. The first is your "need" pile. If you come across any super-important documents that you need to keep, add those to this pile. Once you have gone through all your paperwork, put everything from this pile in a folder or secure them together with a paperclip and put them neatly in your desk drawer.
Now consider your "digital" pile. This is for documents that are important for you to keep but don't need to be printed out. Getting rid of things that can be filed digitally can help you clear up a lot of space. You may be surprised at how many things you have via hard copy that could be kept on your computer desktop.
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One thing you can easily digitize, if you haven't already, is your calendar. If you are keeping a large paper calendar on your desk, this takes up a lot of space that you can use for something else.
Use a digital calendar, like Google Calendar or Outlook, to better sync your meetings with other staff members and free up your office space.
Having a clean workspace can help you get more done throughout the day. (iStock)
Lastly, add to your "trash" pile. This should include everything you do not need. Remember to shred any papers that include any confidential or personal information before throwing them in the trash.
2. Empty everything
When cleaning your office space, take everything out of your desk and place it aside.
In doing so, you can figure out what you want to keep and what you don't need. Put everything that you don't need into a pile, including office supplies, magazines, newspapers, unnecessary and unused cords, etc.
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3. Make decisions about junk items
Once you have compiled any and all junk items, it's time to decide what to do with them. If they are in good condition and could be of use, see if any friends or family members need your stuff. Consider donating any items that are no longer needed.
If you're holding on for dear life to a broken charger, pens without ink, broken desk accessories, etc., it's time to throw these items away.
4. Scrub, scrub, scrub
Even though the organizational aspect of cleaning is important, it's also important to wipe down the surfaces. Use lens wipes, disinfectant wipes, cleaning sprays, etc., to wipe down your computer. Make sure to do this after you've emptied everything off your desk to make it easier to clean.
You can get in-between the keys of your keyboard with a small brush.
Once you've decluttered your space, wipe it down to make it extra clean. (iStock)
5. Decide on what makes a happy workspace
While the goal of spring-cleaning is to actually clean, this is a great time to decide on what you need to feel happy during work.
Make a small list of things you'd like to brighten up your space. Maybe you'd like a new chair, real or fake plants, or a little lamp for extra light. Include pieces that won't add too much clutter.
6. Keep only necessities visible
It is so easy to leave things like old stacks of papers on your desk, but only the things that you need on a daily basis should be on your desk.
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Necessities are different for everyone, but some things you may find yourself reaching for every day, like a pen or highlighter, a small notebook, a lamp or a to-do list, should maintain their space on your desk.
7. Get rid of those sticky notes
Do you really still need that sticky note to remind you to send an email you already sent, or an outline of a project you presented months ago? It's time to let these things go.
Sticky notes can quickly create clutter in a workspace. Reduce your clutter by throwing out all the notes you no longer need.
It's time to trash those old sticky notes with messages you no longer need. (iStock)
If you find anything important on your old stickies, make sure to mark that down.
8. Ask yourself if you really need that
When you are going through your belongings, ask yourself, "Do I really need that?"
If you have items in your workspace that you haven't touched in months or even years, or forgot about altogether in your desk, it's probably time to part ways.
9. Do a digital sweep
While spring-cleaning, don't forget about cleaning your electronics. Go through your computer and get rid of any files that you don't need. Create folders to keep things organized.
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10. Tidy up around your work area
Make sure that you also clean up the area around where you work. If you work from home, clean up around the room that you work in.
Pick things up off the floor, tidy up bookshelves and give the space a thorough vacuuming. Regularly take out your trash to keep a neat space.
11. Make cleaning fun
For most, cleaning is a bore. Pop in some headphones or turn up your speaker and listen to music or a podcast while cleaning to make it more fun.
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You can also create goals for yourself and set timers to 30-minute increments rather than cleaning for hours at a time.
12. Vacuum your desk
Yes, you read that right. Desks can get dusty, but luckily, you can buy mini vacuums online to keep your space tidy.
These small gadgets are helpful to keep in your desk all year. That way, when you need a little cleaning done, you can quickly swipe the mini vacuum across the desk for a clean, workable space.