Staying Organized in the Workplace

You may ask yourself...Why would it be important to stay organized in the workplace? An organized workplace encourages workers to be productive, reduces work-related stress and saves time. When you establish an efficient workplace, you establish structure.

Tips to Get and Stay Organized in the Workplace

Organize your brain
Eliminate time wasters and distractions
Organize your work space
Organize your time

Organize Your Brain

Start your day off right - 'Me Time'

One of the most obvious tips - get enough sleep. Sleep deprivation can have very negative effects on our bodies as a whole: foggy brain, reduced and/or blurred vision and even impaired driving. Do yourself a favor and get to bed early. Your working self will thank you later.

Begin the day by sifting through your emails and notifications that have compiled in your inbox. Eliminate the quick tasks by responding to emails and forwarding referrals to colleagues allowing them to get started on tasks. By going through the quick tasks, it helps prioritize important, time sensitive projects that may take more of your time and attention.

Eliminate Time-Wasters and Distractions

Turn it Off

Our mindset is crucial for staying focused on the right task at the right moment. Don't be a slave to your phone and set aside specific times to check your emails. Allowing pop-up messages to interrupt your workflow can create unnecessary anxiety. Turn off those pop-up messages for a smoother workday. I promise, you won't regret it.

Back to the Basics - Face to Face

Talking directly to our colleagues can clear up miscommunications quickly and eliminate pointless mistakes. For colleagues who work remotely, use live chat formats or pick up the phone. Email has the tendency to take too long when you need a quick response, or can be misconstrued.

Organize Your Work Space

Keeping your work space clean and tidy can improve your productivity and mood.

Eliminate the paper piles with color coded folders for current projects. Or, if you want to eliminate paper, create digital files of everything. Creating your own system that works for you, as no two people are the same.

Organize Your Time

Time

Start with Goals - When organizing your time, the first thing you should do is identify your goals. Make a checklist.

Multitasking effectively is easier said than done. As humans we tend to be horrible at this. Unexpected tasks can be the death of a productive day. Task switching is a time sucker, and the amount of time spent to get back on track is about 25 minutes. Make a plan for your day and stick to it. Keep a checklist as they are our friend; particularly when you are operating under time constraints. Checklists also keep us on track and give us a sense of accomplishment as we mark a task complete.

Reducing meeting times is a huge time saver. If you reduced a one hour meeting per day to 45 minutes, you can gain 25 hours of work time back per month. That is equal to 300 hours in a year!

Once you have accomplished the plan to get organized and effectively implemented it in into your daily routine, you should start to feel a boost of energy, you many even develop healthier eating habits, sleep habits may improve, and so much more... who would have thought?!

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