Best Results Organizing

January is National Get Organized and Be Productive Month. It’s sponsored by National Association of Productivity & Organizing Professionals (NAPO) and known lovingly to the professional organizing and productivity community as #GoMonth.

During GO Month, we celebrate how NAPO members work to improve our clients lives by helping develop functional environments, schedules, and attitudes to support productivity, good mental and physical health and well-being, and achievement of goals. Aren’t we nifty?!

But today, in addition to being almost the halfway point in Go Month, is its own special day. The second Monday in January is National Clean Off Your Desk Day. 

While I’m sure you know that there are a lot of “created” holidays, I’ve always liked knowing how this event came to be. Anne Chase Moeller, daughter of the author of the original Chase’s Calendar of Events, looked at her father’s desk and was dismayed and overwhelmed by the clutter.

To be fair, there’s no documentary evidence that Mr. Chase was bothered by the condition of his desk. In general, most people, whether dealing with their desks at the office or playing the home version, aren’t particularly concerned state of their desks — at least, until they are.

Then, when a furry domesticated creature or the sticky jam-hands of a tiny human or an unexpected gust of wind lays waste to what little hierarchy and structure the desk’s owner created, concern sets in. More often, the problem is that the essential document or sticky note or not-yet-deposited check or instructions gets lost in the sedimentary layers on what was supposed to be a workspace.

Longtime readers of Paper Doll know that I value function over form, and will always place efficiency and effectiveness ahead of aesthetics. However, the desk area is one of those places where messy aesthetics are often a sign of dysfunction.

The truth is that a disorganized desk injects chaos in a person’s life even when they can find what they need, because they almost certainly can’t find it as quickly as they’d like. Disorganization anywhere can yield challenges (to put it kindly), but because our desks represent so many essential activities — financial, legal, professional, personal information management (from planning vacations to signing permission slips) — desk clutter may be the most agitating.

Today, we’re going to look at how ignored desk clutter can have a deleterious effect on physical and mental health, productivity, privacy, and reputation. We’ll also look at the different elements that go into “cleaning off” a desk.

A CLEAN DESK IS A HEALTHY DESK

Cleaning off a desk often means clearing it of whatever doesn’t belong, but it can mean, quite literally, cleaning it.

(If you’re squeamish, you might want to jump down a few paragraphs, because the facts about the germs on your desk might make you feel a bit ill.)

University of Arizona researchers under microbiologist Dr. Charles Gerba found that the average desktop harbors upwards of ten million bacteria, 400 times more bacteria than the average toilet seat. The average (North American) desk contains yucky levels of bacteria like Staph, E Coli, and Salmonella, (eek!) fecal matter, and viruses like influenza and yes, coronaviruses.

But it’s not just the top of your desk that’s the problem; the things on your desk, particular the items you (and others) touch the most often, that are covered in microscopic grossness. The biggest culprits? Look to your:

• Phone — They host approximately 25,000 germs per square inch.  Don’t fall into the trap of thinking your cell phone is off the hook. The germ party disco-ing across your phone is absolute off the hook with bacteria, viruses, fungi, and other creepy stuff!

Think about how often you touch your cell phone after touching just about anything else — elevator buttons, escalator railings, the keypad at the checkout counter, the ATM, etc. (And even if you never take your phone into the bathroom — and please don’t tell me if you do — you may be touching something that was touched by someone whose rest room hygiene is, shall we say, not optimal.

Sure, we’d rather not think of it, but be honest, when was the last time you disinfected your phone?

• Keyboard — One study at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago found that two different types of drug-resistant types of bacteria — MRSA and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium (VRE) — could survive for up to 24 hours on a keyboard. That Arizona University study took samples from a cross-section of 100 American offices and found that keyboards harbored 3,295 microbes a square inch. 

• Mouse — Well,  you’re only touching your mouse with one hand (vs. two on the keyboard), so I guess it’s not surprising that computer mice have about half the microbes, so only about 1,676 of those bugs. Yeah, that’s still a lot. (And no, using a your laptops trackpad doesn’t get you out of the dog house (um, germ house?). Ickiness abounds.)

By the way, a computer mouse is not the only mouse that might show up in a messy desk!

Beyond whatever you do to organize your desk, be sure to make time to keep it clean:

• Take everything off of your desk and put it elsewhere, whether that’s a spare table, a rolling cart, or a clean beach towel on the floor. (Don’t put anything directly on the floor, especially in an office where people are wearing their “outside” shoes and walking around.”)
• Unplug everything. Obviously, if you’re moving a desktop, shut it down safely first.

If you’re just cleaning your mouse or keyboard (and it’s not already wireless), disconnect it from the computer. Cleaning peripherals while they’re plugged in can lead to clicking on all sorts of buttons, links, and files, creating a completely different type of desktop chaos!

• Use a can of compressed air to clean the schmutz out of crevices and tiny spaces, like between keyboard keys.
• Use disinfecting wipes or a cloth and gentle cleanser to clean everything (that doesn’t require special treatment), like your:
  • desktop surface
  • office telephone (see below for cleaning your cell phone)
  • keyboard
  • mouse
  • electronic gadgets
  • printer/copier keypad
  • stapler
  • and all of the various doodads you use at your desk. I’m not going to tell you that you have to sanitize every pen on your desk, but since the onset of COVID, I’m sure you’ve noticed that doctor’s office check-in areas have little notes delineating the “clean” pens vs. the used ones.
• Check your computer’s manual regarding preferred techniques for cleaning and de-germifying the monitor and computer, itself.
• Follow your manufacturer’s directions for de-germifying your phone. Obviously, you known not to squirt it with cleaning liquids or submerge it water, but most phone-cleaning advice includes these notes:
  • Don’t use bleach products. (Duh!)
  • Disconnect your phone from the charger and any accessories first.
  • Remove your phone from the case and clean it separately.
  • Clear dust and debris from from the phone with a swoosh of compressed air and/or a dry eyeglass cleaning cloth or similarly soft, lint-free cloth.
  • Make sure your phone is completely dry for several minutes before turning it back on. 
  • You can also use UV phone sanitizers, which come as wands or boxes. UV light damages the nucleic acid of viruses, making them no longer infectious. The PhoneSoap 3 UV Cell Phone Sanitizer and Dual Universal Cell Phone Charger is shown below; still, I find the entire concept a little Sci-Fi-esque and still win sanitizing wipes.

• Oh, and your office coffee mug? Take it home and run it through the dishwasher. Don’t use that mangy break room sponge that’s been there since who-knows-when.

Clean your desk for Clean Off Your Desk Day, but don’t only clean these spaces once a year. To keep germs at bay, try to clean your high-touch areas on your desk weekly (and after anyone uses your computer), and schedule time on your calendar to deep clean often, especially during flu season. 

Pro-tip: don’t eat at your desk. Not only does it contribute to the germs in your workspace, but as I explained in Toxic Productivity In the Workplace and What Comes Next, working through lunch and not taking a “brain break” is bad for your mental health. Speaking of mental health…   

CLEANING OFF YOUR DESK CAN SAVE YOUR SANITY

Clutter in our workspaces is similar to plaque in our arteries. It slowly builds up without us realizing anything is wrong until the flow (of blood, in our arteries; of clarity of thought, at our desks) is further and further restricted. 

We may not immediately perceive it, but clutter distracts us from our priorities. It’s already hard enough to pay bills, understand field trip notices, or plan business tasks without sensory clutter (noisy cubicle mates, Slack and text notifications, ringing phones, and human interruptions) obscuring our focus.

But tangible clutter on and around our desks (whether at work or at home) hides our priorities under sedimentary rock-like layers. The oldest stuff is at the bottom, the newest is at the top; but priorities, which are date-of-origin agnostic are ignored. What’s important is almost always hidden, so whatever is on top of the pile, no matter the priority, grabs our attention.

Every time you test three pens before you find one that does have ink and doesn’t leave blobs all across the page, your patience wears just a little thinner. Each time you must flip through every sticky note pasted to your monitor or floating around your desk to find a password so you can meet a deadline, your blood pressure increases incrementally. And just as with too much plaque in an artery, when there’s too much clutter obscuring your focus, there will come a point where the blockage completely halts all flow!

To overcome overwhelm, read my classic article, If You’re Drowning In Paper Build A Raft and then set phone or calendar alarms to remind you to periodically:

• File away reference information (digitally, like in Dropbox or Evernote, or tangibly, a file box or cabinet) and tuck action paper work in tickler file or in folders in a file riser.
• Clear your desk and put away projects you’ve completed
• Digitize as much of your loose paper information as possible

Of course, avoiding distractions that make you feel like you’re going to pop isn’t the only way to keep your desk time cheery.

Invest in office supplies that brighten your mood (like colorful folders or attractive computer risers) to incline you to stick with your organizing rituals. For examples, check out:

• Paper Doll Explores the Best of Desktop File Boxes
• Organize Your Desktop with Your Perfect Desk Pad
• Cool and Colorful Desktop Solutions to Organize Your Workspace

You can also add a few fun desk accessories, but again, the more you have on your desk, the easier it is for clutter to build up. My favorite desk accessory is my cell phone stand (purple, to match my iMac). It has the added bonus that when I’m using it to watch something on my phone, I’m not holding my phone in a death grip.

PICK FUNCTION OVER FORM TO KEEP YOUR DESK CLEAN AND CLEAR

When you keep your desk clear of crud, and organize what you keep on your desk, you’re more likely to be able to focus on essential tasks.

To start with the clearing aspect of cleaning off your desk, ask yourself two vital questions:

1) What do you have on your desk that you don’t need or want (and where should it go)?

Take a moment to look around your desk. (Go ahead. We’ll wait.) What’s on your desk that really doesn’t belong? What’s crowding you out of your space?

If it’s your desk at home, are there toys on your desk? Your desk is an extension of your brain. How can your brain focus on preparing for a client meaning if Mister Fluffy is sitting in the middle of your workspace?

Are there meds that you don’t want to forget to take? Be honest — are they reminding you to take them or have the bottles just become part of the atmosphere? Move them to the kitchen counter, next to the coffee maker, where you’re sure to notice them.

Are there books you intend to read but which have sat untouched for weeks? Months? If you really want to read, move your TBR (To Be Read) pile to a nearby shelf and schedule a 15-minute block every morning on your calendar. Start your day reading and you’ll make at least that much progress. Instead of hoping to find time in your schedule, make time to read (or learn a new language or write thank you notes).

Take the aspirational material off your desk but put your aspirations on your calendar.

Similarly, put stop piling your action paperwork on the desk. Put items in the right day slots in your tickler file so they’ll be ready when the assigned time arrives. For more on using a tickler file to organize your time and desk space, check out my classic ebook, Tickle Yourself Organized.

Don’t put things down; put them away! This is especially apt in the small, sometimes cramped confines of your desk. As the various posts above explain, you need to define specific homes for reference and research files in railed filing drawers/cabinets or shelved binders.

For organizing the rest of the loose papers on your desk, avail yourself of my guidance on developing a family filing system:

• Paper Doll Shares 12 Kinds of Paper To Declutter Now
• Reference Files Master Class (Part 1) — The Essentials of Paper Filing
• Reference Files Master Class (Part 2) — Financial and Legal Papers 
• Reference Files Master Class (Part 3) — Medical Papers
• Reference Files Master Class (Part 4) — Household and Personal Papers

Don’t forget about the non-paper items on your desk.

How many pens and pencils do you have? Is your mug filled with pencils you never use (either because they’re stubby and dull or you’re just not a pencil pusher — I mean, user)? Are there thirty pens in various colors and thicknesses, but you only use a black Sharpie fine pen or a sparkly blue gel roller-ball?

Stop collecting crummy ballpoint pens from hotels, conference centers, and the bank. (Did you know those cheapie pens are purposely only partially filled with ink because they know people will take them and never use them?) 

And even though we’re working on clearing your desk, there’s another important question to ask.

2) What might you want on your desk that you don’t actually have?

• Do you get up from your desk frequently to find information you want at your fingertips without Googling (or when your WiFi is out)? Get a bright three-ring binder and fill sheet protectors with essential info like emergency contacts or the configuration data for your wireless router. Create a printed cheat sheet for making those “funny” symbols for letters to your international clients and emoji to your friends. (Do you do international commerce? Make sure you know your $ from your €.)
• Are you constantly unplugging peripherals because you don’t have enough places to plug in your external hard drive, disk drive, or other noodle-y USB thingies? Get a charging hub to neatly corral everything.
• Store action items and office supplies based on my Rule of Proximity & Utility. In other words, the more often you use something (or should be using it), the closer it should be to you in the “prime real estate” of your desk.

But c’mon, you don’t need a dozen stacks of Post-It pads on the surface of your desk. Stage those office supplies in a distant drawer or cabinet where you can go “shopping” as needed.

DON’T BE INSECURE — CLEAN YOUR DESK TO PRESERVE PRIVACY & SECURITY

Your desk is clear of germs? Check!

You’ve created categories for your papers and found the right supplies and tools to tuck away what you don’t need on top of your desk? Yay!

Once you’ve gotten the supplies and gadgets back to your desk or tucked away and the files (more or less) sorted into their action, reference, or archived categories, really scrutinize the teeny pieces of paper that adorn your cubicle walls, filing cabinet sides, bulletin boards, and the other surfaces.

As noted, you’ll save your sanity by gathering all those loose notes and stickies and transferring that information to wherever it belongs, whether in digital or (organized) analog form.

But there’s a subset of loose pieces of paper that are particularly dangerous to your security. How long have those Post-Its bearing passwords been affixed to the monitor for all (from coworkers to cleaning staff) to see?

Who else wanders by your office? Customers, vendors, consultants? Friends and family of other employees, maintenance staff and colleagues? Gladys Kravitz?

Even in a home office, where only the UPS guy, babysitter and pizza delivery lady see your desk, it’s crucial to protect sensitive data from disclosure — whether that’s your Social Security number and bank data, clients’ proprietary information, or personnel files.

The more clutter in your desktop environment, the harder it is to know when something is missing or if prying eyes have settled on them, so it’s time to stop keeping your passwords on or around your desk. Optimally, you should pick a digital password manager, but even using a password notebook (that you keep tucked or locked away when you’re not at your desk) is better than nothing. 

Get out of the habit of posting sensitive information on your bulletin board, stuck to your desktop, or on the periphery of your computer monitor! It’s tempting to scribble your new password on a sticky note and put it where you’ll see it, but it’s only convenient until the first time something goes awry. 

KEEP YOUR DESK — AND YOUR REPUTATION — CLEAN

At work, do clients and colleagues sometimes seem reluctant to leave files or important documents with you?

Are family members dubious about leaving you documents to sign or checks to deposit?

The problem may be your desk.

Whether or not the impression is accurate, people commonly assume a cluttered desk represents a cluttered mind.

Yes, I know Albert Einstein said, “If a cluttered desk is a sign of a cluttered mind, of what, then, is an empty desk a sign?”

And certainly his was a great mind. But this was what Einstein’s desk at Princeton looked like on the day he died in 1955.

If you aren’t Einstein, will you be given the benefit of the doubt, particularly at work? (And let’s just imagine how much more Einstein might have accomplished if he didn’t have to waste any time digging for the reference he wanted?)

While it’s important to be physically and mentally healthy and improve functional productivity and security, preserving your reputation by keeping your desk clear of clutter and your essentials accessible will better help you achieve your goals. (I mean, assuming your goals include being promoted, being appreciated, and doing a great job.)

It’s not just cleanliness and functional tidiness that impacts the judgment of others. Too many personal items on your desk can adversely affect your professional image. If more than one in five items on your desk are personal, like photos, toys and stuffed animals, banners, or goofy mugs, those in authority (or in a position to report to authority) might doubt your commitment or work ethic. A University of Michigan study found that “An extremely messy personal space seems to lead people to believe the owner of that space is more neurotic and less agreeable.”

And let’s face it, even if your desk is in a home office and there’s no promotion beyond Chief Cook and Bottle Washer, Vice President for Financial Affairs and Co-Chair of Family Strategizing, do you need the sub-conscious distraction and lost space due to “desk trinkets” that you probably no longer use or even actually notice?

For National Clean Off Your Desk Day, give your desk a refresh. If you need some motivation, Zoom or Facetime with a friend or pair up with your work (or actual) spouse. Play some motivating music (if it won’t disturb your colleagues or housemate), set a pomodoro timer, and see how much you can accomplish before Beyoncé or Taylor finish cheering you on.

Clean the schmutz, eject what doesn’t belong (and figure out whether to toss it or file it away), and only keep things on your desk that help you be productive or make you happy to be at your desk.

And then to celebrate your achievement (and the observance of Clean Off Your Desk Day), eat somewhere other than your desk!

What one thing will you remove from your desktop today?