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Leadership Success and Its Greatest Barrier: the Law of Administrivia
Years ago, a very wise, and often cynical boss of mine asked me for a definition of management. After reflecting on the question I proceeded to give him an intellectually careful and, I thought, accurate definition. He allowed me to complete the...
Marketing, Selling and Serving the Older Adult, Senior Citizens, Family Caregivers
Are your clients pleased by the fine quality service that you provide? Validating your clients’ endorsement of you through Certification as a Senior Approved Service will increase your client base. Senior Approved Certification leads a family...
Organized for Success: Five Keys for Making Home-Work Work
If only you could work from home you would be able to get more done. No interruptions from co-workers. No pretentious banter with your boss. No sitting in meetings for hours thinking about all the work you could be doing, or better yet, daydreaming...
Reorganize Your Time To Accommodate Your 2006 Business Start Up
Almost everyone wants or needs more money coming in (especially now!), and with this desire most would like to start some sort of extra income-producing project. It's a big step to give up the trudge to the "day-job" and not all of you can afford...
Your Office and Lingerie
Your Office and Lingerie By: Janet L. Hall Most commonly it is up to secretaries and office personnel to keep the office running smooth, efficient, and not waste time or money. Yet many sales people don't have this luxury. Try the 10 tips below...
 
10 Tips for Digging Out Your Desk Today

10 TIPS FOR DIGGING OUT YOUR DESK
by Eve Abbott, Excerpted from her new book, How to Do Space Age Work with a Stone Age Brain(TM)

How long has it been since you saw your desk? Has your polished mahogany (or pitted Formica) been buried for so long that you can't remember what your desk is made out of?

If so, use these tips to clear yourself some space to work in-and stay on top of your most urgent action items.

"I know I had it here somewhere..."
One big reason we can't find the information we need when we need is that there's just too much of it. Not just too much coming in, but too much piling up. Resist unnecessary information overload and protect your mind-and your desk-from clutter. Why go through three inches of stuff when you're only looking for one piece of paper?

When you take a piece of paper and you put it somewhere flat, it takes up almost a square foot of space. The instant that you put anything on top of it-Bingo! You're halfway to compost. You're creating a random access office.

On computers, RAM works really well. In humans, most of our memory is in context, so random access is a recipe for disaster.

Having to look through piles of paper steals your time every day. Even worse, while you're looking through those piles, your focus is dissolving. And then you have to get back into what I call work-state or focus in order to do a good job again.

Get it VERTICAL!
When you get your paper vertical, you can fit more than two reams of paper into that same one square foot of physical space that just one piece of paper occupies when it's horizontal!

To start with, let's consider an escalating wire sorter, which makes a great visual to-do list with the most important things in the front. Notice how it "climbs" - so the top of each file sticks up above the one in front of it.

That means you can see all of the contents at once, without having to actually touch any of the others. You can use several sorters to improve fingertip access to your information. For example use one each for related People, Projects and Meetings to-dos.

There are many different organizing tools to help you get your paper vertical, and most are available in any office supply store.

Does it really belong on your desk?
The only things that live on top of my desk are the computer monitor, desk caddy with pens/paperclips etc., my phone and message book, and the electric stapler. I strive for nothing else on my desktop unless I'm working on it that day.

In deciding what really belongs on your desk, you need to think: "Frequency of use determines ease of access." If you're not using it that day or every day, put it somewhere farther away from you. Or when a bunch of paper is 'sticking' to your hand, try "The more often I use it -- the closer it has to be."

Remove any materials, supplies, etc. that you are not using or actually working on today or tomorrow from your Action Zone. Even if you don't take the time to file them now, get them off your desk and out of your way.

Defining your Action Zone
Your Action Zone is the area you can reach comfortably while sitting in your chair. That means no stretching and no standing up. How big an area this is depends on how long your arms are. No matter how large your office is, your Action Zone is limited by the size of your "wingspan."

That's


why the work area available to you on your desk is so crucial. It's also why you want an L- or U-shaped workstation: you can turn your chair and be in a whole different Function Zone.

If you have an L-shaped setup, set it up so your Computer Function Zone is on one side, and your Paper Function Zone is on the other side of the L.

Making Room on Your Desk
Ditch all those cracked coffee cups of pens and pencils and use one small desk caddy like this, which circles around for easy access. It has all the basic desk tools in here that you usually need.

If you took all the tools that fit in here and spread them on your desk it takes up two square feet. (I confess I'm a little nutty, I actually did this). The desk caddy footprint only uses up eight inches square.

If you like to spread out big projects, you can pick up the desk caddy, take it into another room, spread out your materials, and you've got an instant "office" no matter where you are.

Desk Drawers EQUAL Action Drawers
In the shallow "bureau" drawer in my desk, I keep a 10-key solar calculator, a tray for my expenses, business cards, stamps, return address labels, and Post It notes-all things I use frequently while working at my desk.

Another good way to use these small drawers is to get a tray-style organizer for your desk tools instead of a desk caddy like mine. When you sit down at your desk, just leave the drawer open so your tray is available the entire time you're working. Then none of those tools is cluttering up your desk surface.

When you're sitting at your desk and your file drawer is pulled out, instead of having your files face the front of the drawer, turn the files 90 degrees, so the file tabs face your chair. Then when you pull the drawer out the files (and their labels) are facing you.

The categories in my Action Drawer are: Business, Finances, Clients, Networks, and Eve. These are the files that I'm into on an almost daily basis. This is where my quarterly expenses and invoices go.

Come the end of that quarter, these files get moved into the Expenses part of my History File Zone, and I set up new files for the next quarter in the Action Drawer. Keep the paper flowing through and out!

Keeping Your Desk Clear

1. Don't let it land on your desk unless it's an action item. Establish a separate inbox for mail and a "file pile" away from your desk.

2. Keep your Action files vertical and clearly labeled, so you can see what you need to do today. Use the same categories for the sorter on your desk and your Action file drawer.

3. When you finish working with any piece of paper, move it out of your Action Zone. Put it into that file pile-or recycle it if you really won't need it again.

Have fun getting control over your desk again!

For more time-saving tips go to http:///www.organize.com
Copyright 2005 Eve Abbott. All Rights Reserved.

About the Author

Copyright, Eve Abbott All Rights Reserved. The Organizer Extraordinaire's new book "How to Do Space Age Work with a Stone Age Brain" TM is available online at http://www.organize.com Sign up for more time-saving tips. Enjoy free brain quizzes to help you work at your personal best! Eve’s guide is the first book to offer easy, online assessments that will help you make your own personal organizing solutions match your individual work style.

 

Online Organizing.com
Welcome to OnlineOrganizing.com!. Get Organized! Find the best organizing products, free tips on taming your clutter, an online newsletter, ...
www.onlineorganizing.com
 
organizetips.com - organized, time management, planners,tips,Tips ...
Get Organized,Organizing ideas, Tips, daily,chore lists,planners.
www.organizetips.com
 
At Home : Organizing : Take This Stuff and Store It! : Home ...
Our guide to the simple life, where everything has its place.
www.hgtv.com
 
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Learn about home organizing tips for bathroom, bedroom, and garages from Home & Garden Television.
www.hgtv.com
 
Christmas Organizing | Creating J.O.Y. for Christmas
Offers a community of resources and support to help people get organized for Christmas throughout the entire year by creating and organizing a Christmas ...
www.christmasorganizing.com
 
Organizing - HUD
Organizing. [Vea la versión en español de esta página] · [Display the text version of this page] ... Organizing · Economic development. Working with HUD ...
www.hud.gov
 
Get Organized - Organizing Tips and Ideas to help you get ...
Free tips, ideas and articles to help you get organized.
www.getorganizednow.com
 
Management Function of Organizing: Overview of Methods
Organizing can be viewed as the activities to collect and configure resources in ... The following are some of the major types of organizing required in a ...
www.managementhelp.org
 
Organizing - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In that sense, organizing can also be defined as the act to place different ... Organizing, in companies point of view, is the management function that ...
en.wikipedia.org
 
Amazon.com: Organizing from the Inside Out: Books: Julie Morgenstern
Amazon.com: Organizing from the Inside Out: Books: Julie Morgenstern by Julie Morgenstern.
www.amazon.com
 
Organized-Living.com - Get organized, Professional Organizer tips ...
Articles and tips to help individuals organize their home or work life better.
www.organized-living.com
 
How to organize your home and office, organizing tips, articles on ...
LifeOrganizers.com is a rich resource of office and home organizing articles, tips, and fresh, easy ideas on how to get rid of clutter from every part of ...
www.lifeorganizers.com
 
The Virginia Organizing Project
VOP, racism, social justice, community organizing, leadership development, living wage, grassroots organizing, sexual orientation .
www.virginia-organizing.org
 
Center for Third World Organizing
A training and resource center dedicated to building a social justice movement led by people of color.
www.ctwo.org
 
Welfare Rights Organizing Coalition
WROC of Olympia, Washington, organizes groups of women and men who are current or former TANF recipients to watch how welfare and family policy is ...
www.wroc.org
 
Self-Organizing Systems FAQ for Usenet newsgroup comp.theory.self ...
Frequently Asked Questions about self-organized systems.
www.calresco.org
 
Beyond Bookmarks: Schemes for Organizing the Web
Beyond Bookmarks: Schemes for Organizing the Web is a clearinghouse of World Wide Web sites that have applied or adopted standard classification schemes or ...
www.public.iastate.edu
 
Organizing Institute
Program by the AFL-CIO to train union organizers and put them in the field.
www.aflcio.org
 
SouthWest Organizing Project
A statewide multi-racial, multi-issue, community based membership organization. Includes information on history, campaigns, and volunteer opportunities.
www.swop.net
 
Farm Labor Organizing Committee
The historic contract in North Carolina opens up a new chapter in the FLOC struggle for justice and ushers in a new era in farmworker organizing. ...
www.floc.com
 
 

 
Content Menu
  • 1099 misc forms for independent contractors for 2005

  • 10 hours or 10 days to a spotless and organized kitchen

  • 10 minutes a day to organize your office

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  • 10 tips to color code your paper from chaos to coherence

  • 11 success tips to home based internet business

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  • 19 ultimate success tips for your online business

  • 1 2 3 sort

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  • 4 classifications of public retirement systems

  • 4 tips for organizing your ebay inventory

  • 4 tips for the successful businessman

  • 5 easy tips on using light to improve your day

  • 5 tips to color code your way from computer chaos to coherence

  • 5 tips to make shorter meetings equal better results

  • 6 steps to avoid losing summer sales

  • 7 organizing secrets of successful people

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  • 7 tips for an organized sales person

  • achievements outweigh education and experience

  • action plan in time management

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  • analyzing time

  • are you a home based business entrepreneur

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  • automobile industry position in russia

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  • a daily dose of planners

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  • a flexible way to work in the 21st century

  • a guide to investing in startups

  • a job well done ten ways to recognize reward hardworking staff

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  • balancing technology management and leadership

  • becoming radiant boost your teams creativity with mind mapping

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  • being a socially aware organisation

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  • index

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  • is a home based business right for you

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  • is this business right for you

  • is your trash cash 5 easy places to sell your stuff

  • i wasnt paying attention where does my money go and how can i get some back part 1

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  • i wasnt paying attention where does my money go and how can i get some back part 3

  • i wasn t paying attention where does my money go and how can i get some back part 1

  • i wasn t paying attention where does my money go and how can i get some back part 2

  • i wasn t paying attention where does my money go and how can i get some back part 3

  • jazz up your office for success ten tips to a comfortable and effective work space

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  • keeping the small in your project

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