Organizing to Work From Home: Your Routine

It can be challenging to work from home and still be productive. There are more distractions (kids, snacks, the couch!) than you usually have in the office, yet you still have to meet work expectations.

With so many of us now forced to WFH, here’s how to ease the transition and keep it all together.

• Have an intentional workspace (not just the laptop in bed)

• If you do have an office area, avoid getting up and going right to your work computer in your PJs

• Try to stick to some familiar routines: shower, get dressed, eat breakfast, get your cup of coffee before you start working

• Do take breaks to get outside for a walk around the block or just hang out in your yard for a few minutes; studies, like this one, have found that a “green break” can be good for you and your productivity

• If you and a partner are both trying to work and take care of the kids at the same time, make a schedule of who’s “on” to help with the kids around daily work calls and project priorities

• Be sure to keep in touch with your manager/your team throughout the work week

How to Clear the Corner Clutter?

Corners are magnets for clutter! Things seem to end up in the corners of our rooms, often in piles, bags, or boxes. If you really want to clear the clutter, take a look at what's hiding out in the corners.

Here’s how to get started:

1. Pick one corner to tackle. Set a timer for 30 minutes.
2. Pull everything out. Toss and recycle what you can.
3. Put items in categories, and put away what you can.
4. Consider each item and why it ended up in the corner. Does it not have a place to go? Or is the place it goes over stuffed? Does the item require an action? Is it in transition to go somewhere else (to be donated, to a friend, to a family member)?
5. Deal with each of the items. If they have to go into a space that is overstuffed, put it in the area and then schedule another time to declutter that space. You can also schedule time to follow up and make decisions or add the action items to your To Do list. If items are going out, put them near your door or in your car and resolve to pass them on within a week. 

Once you’ve been able to clear the clutter in your corners, enjoy your space! The room will feel more open and peaceful.

Receipt Organization: The Shredder Solution

While working with a client to de-clutter his bedroom, we discovered that one problem area was receipts. Like many men (my husband included) the client emptied his pockets in his bedroom, which meant that change, small papers and receipts ended up on the flat surfaces, stuffed into drawers, and all over the space. We brainstormed strategies to keep the surfaces clear, including bowls to hold change and receipts, a wastebasket, and even a shredder.

When I returned to this client's house I was thrilled to see that he had a low cabinet in place now, providing room for a charging station, a bowl for change, and a small sleek shredder! The Bonsaii Desktop Shredder is small enough to fit in the space, and its modern styling is a perfect fit for this client's decor.

This illustrates an important organizing concept: keep the tools you need (shredder, wastebasket) as close to where you use them, even if this means you have duplicates. The client had a shredder in a downstairs office, but the process of gathering receipts and taking them downstairs to shred was cumbersome and just didn't happen. The client was determined to keep his bedroom surfaces clear, and this receipt shredder is a perfect solution.

Hidden Storage with a File Ottoman

Today so many of us do our paperwork or bill paying from the kitchen table or the couch. I'm a big advocate for keeping the files we need near where we actually use them, and I've written before about my own hidden financial file storage.

There are some great options for "hidden" file storage in a file storage ottoman. You can find file ottomans online at Grandinroad or amazon, and in stores like Target and Costco. 

A friend happily showed me the ottoman she found below, which not only has room for lots of files but also a tray for office supplies. When closed it looks great an adds seating in her home office. 

So when you can't find your papers, think beyond the stuffed file cabinet and try a storage ottoman.