Organizing
Office
Welcome
to the addSpace advice section. Every week I answer new questions
submitted by readers on Organizing, Image and Fashion. Topics are
listed in the left column. If you do not see an answer to your question,
please email me us at advice@addSpaceToYourLife.com.
Your questions will be answered in the order received. Please be patient.
Once I have written a solution to your challenge you will receive
it via email and your article will be posted online. Thanks for visiting
addSpaceToYourLife.com!
E-mail your questions to advice@addspacetoyourlife.com
2.3.05
Getting that office ready for business
Dear Kathi,
My desk is overloaded with papers and bills. I have tried several
different systems but I still end up buried under paperwork. How can
I make my desk function?
Emille, San Marcos
Emille,
Your desk sounds like it under attack from your paperwork. You are
not alone. You can take charge by delegating a space for each type
of aggressive paper that enters your office/desk area.
Businesses typically handle these categories of paper every week.
1. Business Cards
2. Reference Materials
3. Client Information
4. Mail
5. Work in Progress
Use these simple solutions:
1. Schedule a regular time every week to enter Business Card and new
contact information into your computer database. If you don’t
use a computer, file these cards weekly either by category or alphabetically
into a rolodex or a card binder. If you use a computer and can’t
seem to enter the data quick enough, consider purchasing a business
card scanner. These little $100 scanners are huge time savers with
built in programs to enter the data into your email or Excel program
for easy retrieval.
2. Skim through the publications that you wish to read as they arrive
and either tear out the important articles or earmark them with sticky
notes. Remove these papers from your desk area and place into some
type of a “to go” basket. Once mobile, you can read during
lunch, at home, or whenever you have a free moment. Make sure to toss
the information immediately after reading unless it needs to be archived
for future reference. If this is the case, file it as it re-enters
your office area. Do not let it land back onto your desk!
3.In most professions, every client should have a space within a filing
system. Clients will be represented by either active or archivable
files. If you several active clients at a time, consider creating
an easy access desktop vertical file folder area. As clients become
inactive, file their folders either alphabetically by last name or
if you have different types of clients, by category and then alphabetically.
4. Mail should be sorted, separated and conquered before it enters
your office and hits your desk. Consider auto-paying bills online
to eliminate monthly mailings. You can access an entire article written
about mail flow by visiting http://www.addspacetoyourlife.com/advice01_20_05.html.
The second question in this column addresses (no pun intended) the
mail conundrum that we each experience.
5. If you have several projects underway at a time, create a space
for each project. Separate into a file folder, basket or bin depending
on how much paperwork is required to complete each project. Make sure
to contain projects individually so they won’t accidentally
merge into one another. This will save time, frustration and increase
your productivity.
Most importantly, make sure your work area is large enough for your
particular profession. It is counterproductive to work in an area
that doesn’t hold the tools you need within arms reach. For
the majority of us, a large desk is mandatory because we have to support
a computer, printer, phone, day planner, files and often more. When
everything is stowed in your desk area, don’t forget to leave
space for taking notes with old-fashioned pen and paper!
Kathi
is a professional organizer, image consultant and event planner based
in San Diego California.
Please
submit your questions to:
advice@addspacetoyourlife.com
.
San Diego Professional Organizer
