I’ve been dealing with some neck and shoulder pain that I’m told is a result of poor ergonomics. That was my cue to research buying an electric sit-stand desk, something I’d been thinking about for awhile. The desk has been in place for about three weeks and I LOVE it!
Tagged with: clean desk, desk, elfa, furniture, health, ikea, repurposing
In organizing, we call this anchoring. If you put a tray or basket under a more-or-less random pile of stuff, it feels orderly. Think salt-and-pepper shakers and other tabletop paraphernalia. They can feel scattered if unanchored but if a tray is placed underneath, it feels organized.
Tagged with: clean desk, desk, worth repeating
Today, I turned my attention to a tiny challenge that has a big impact: the area of my desk that I look at constantly. I probably view this area of my desk more minutes a day than anything else in my home, except probably my computer monitor.
Tagged with: 15 minutes, clean desk, closets, organizing, tiny projects
Phone cables are vital items, used daily, but they’re such a pain to store, aren’t they? A couple of weeks ago, I revamped how I store my ear buds and phone charging cable at my desk, and I’ve been so happy. I thought I’d share here.
Tagged with: clean desk, cords, desk, home office
Today, I focused on my desktop (the top of my actual desk, not my computer desktop). I forgot to set my timer and I was watching Anderson Cooper on Stephen Colbert at the same time, so I don’t know how long it took. But I’m confident it would have taken less than 15 minutes if I’d been focused.
Tagged with: 15 minutes, clean desk, organizing, tiny projects
In organizing, we call this anchoring. If you put a tray or basket under a more-or-less random pile of stuff, it feels orderly. Think salt-and-pepper shakers and other tabletop paraphernalia. They can feel scattered if unanchored but if a tray is placed underneath, it feels organized.
Tagged with: clean desk, desk
I wrote this post in 2014, but it’s as true today as it was then. The items on my desk have changed, but the need to focus on clearing it for just a few minutes hasn’t. It’s amazing the results that ten minutes of focused tidying can produce!
Yesterday afternoon, I sat down at my cleared-off desk (I’d cleared it because the housecleaner was coming that morning), and proceeded to trash it. I don’t know what happened—I think I was looking for something I’d written down but couldn’t find. Plus I’d probably dumped some stuff on the desk when I came home. (Yikes.)
Tagged with: 15 minutes, clean desk, decluttering, worth repeating
Today I’m taking some inspiration from a blog post I wrote almost three years ago. I wish I could tell you that my bureau has only three things on it today, but the truth is there’s a little bit of clutter. This weekend I’m going to clear it off and get it back to the state that is pictured! Then I’m sure it will be easier for me to keep it clear.
Tagged with: clean bureau, clean desk, decluttering, goals, habits, routines, worth repeating
I don’t know who’s in charge of designating these national “holidays” but I’m happy that today is Organize Your Home Office Day. (I’m less enthused about ones like Frozen Food Day, which was March 6, according to the Days of the Year website.)
Tagged with: clean desk, home office, organize your family history
I see a lot of messy desks. And sometimes my own desk is messy. I’ve come to believe that the key to having a truly clear desk is to be really careful about what you actually store there. When you clean off your desk, you want to have plenty of clear space on which to work. For me, all that clear space gives me a sense of peace while simultaneously motivating me. When your desk is cleared off, how clear is it really?
Tagged with: clean desk, decluttering, order
If you can’t remember the last time you saw the surface of your desk, perhaps it’s time to experience the joy of a clean desk. I know that time is limited and cleaning up your desk may not rank high on the list of ways you’d like to spend your time. but it’s worth it. When you sit down at a clear desk, your mind is more clear and you can be more focused on your research.
Tagged with: clean desk, decluttering, new year
My desk needs some serious help at the moment, probably because I’m spending too little time in my office these days. This weekend, I plan to focus on creating more visual peace in my office. I’m taking inspiration from this blog post, which I first posted on February 18, 2013. I’m so glad I signed up for Jen’s program and I wish she were still offering it!
Tagged with: clean desk, clutter clearing, declutter, decluttering, desk, home office, jennifer hofmann, worth repeating
Nearly three years ago, I moved my desk 90 degrees. The impact was immediate and amazing! I’m still loving the placement of my desk, so I thought I’d repeat the post I wrote about it in 2013.
Tagged with: clean desk, clutter clearing, declutter, decluttering, desk, furniture, home office, jennifer hofmann, worth repeating
I wrote this post a year ago, but the scenario has been repeated here many times. Taking just ten minutes to put stuff away and tidy up can have powerful results!
Yesterday afternoon, I sat down at my cleared-off desk (I’d cleared it because the housecleaner was coming that morning), and proceeded to trash it. I don’t know what happened—I think I was looking for something I’d written down but couldn’t find. Plus I’d probably dumped some stuff on the desk when I came home. (Yikes.)
Tagged with: 15 minutes, clean desk, decluttering, worth repeating
I strive every day to whittle my email inbox down to zero. It’s a strategy that has worked well for me for going on four years.
Tagged with: clean desk, email, habits, routines
I was out of town for five days in mid-September. I’ve been back a week and I still don’t have my mojo back.
Tagged with: clean desk, email, habits, routines, self-care, task list, travel
I hope I don’t shock you when I share with you that, until recently, I never made my bed. Here’s why: My husband typically gets up after me, so by the time he was up and around my day had begun and I didn’t give my bed another thought. At bedtime, I’d pull the sheets and blanket up so that we could comfortably sleep in it, but throughout the day it was unmade. No big deal. But certainly not beautiful.
Tagged with: bed, clean desk, gretchen rubin, habits, keys
If you click on the clean bureau tag to left on this blog, you’ll see that pretty much every year one of my goals is to put my clothes away properly at night and keep the top of the bureau clear.
Tagged with: clean bureau, clean desk, decluttering, goals, habits, routines
Yesterday afternoon, I sat down at my cleared-off desk (I’d cleared it because the housecleaner was coming that morning), and proceeded to trash it. I don’t know what happened—I think I was looking for something I’d written down but couldn’t find. Plus I’d probably dumped some stuff on the desk when I cam home. (Yikes.)
Tagged with: 15 minutes, clean desk, decluttering
Last July, I cleared off my very cluttered computer desktop. As I wrote then, it took only 50 minutes and I did it while flying on an airplane.
Tagged with: clean desk, computer desktop, habits
I’m always amazed at what a big difference a little focused effort at decluttering, tidying, and organizing can make. I blogged about that last October.
Over the past week, I let my office get a little out of control. Getting ready to travel for a long weekend, I had stopped clearing my desk off each night. My early-morning pre-flight preparations made things worse. And when I got home from the trip on Monday afternoon, I worried about catching up with email, not cleaning things up.
Tagged with: 15 minutes, clean desk, disorder, order, worth repeating
On Friday, I blogged about my desire to clear off my computer desk top every day so that it would be as clean as my physical desk top.
Tagged with: clean desk, computer desktop, habits
I write all the time (most recently, here) about how important it is for me to clear off the top of my desk each evening. That habit, which takes just a few minutes at the end of the day, makes it so much easier for me to function in the morning.
Tagged with: clean desk, computer desktop, habits, lifehacker
I do three things almost every weeknight at the end of the work day that help me to stay on top of my business, start the day feeling productive, and reduce the stress in my life. These three habits have a lot to do with my really enjoying being an entrepreneur. They are:
Tagged with: clean desk, email, habit, routines, task list
I’m not somebody who switches furniture around. I know there are people who consider that fun, but I’m not one of them. I typically agonize over the placement of furniture and once it’s done, that’s that.
Tagged with: clean desk, clutter clearing, declutter, decluttering, desk, furniture, home office, jennifer hofmann
I recently signed up for the fabulous Workspace and Studio Redesign program offered by Jennifer Hofmann of Inspired Home Office.
Tagged with: clean desk, clutter clearing, declutter, decluttering, desk, home office, jennifer hofmann
On January 5, 2008, I cleared off my desk. And I kept it cleared off, on a daily basis, for about four years. I’ve blogged about the effort and the rewards of maintaining a clean desk. I’m a huge advocate.
Tagged with: clean desk, habits, motivation, productivity
Over the past week, I let my office get a little out of control. Getting ready to travel for a long weekend, I had stopped clearing my desk off each night. My early-morning pre-flight preparations made things worse. And when I got home from the trip on Monday afternoon, I worried about catching up with email, not cleaning things up.
Tagged with: 15 minutes, clean desk, disorder, order
So it’s only 7:23 a.m. as I write this and I already feel like rebooting my day. Why? My cat, Joe, who’s been driving me nuts lately by lolling around on my desktop (frequently on top of my keyboard and mouse) rolled right into my full coffee cup, emptying it all over my desk. He spilled the coffee away from himself, so he didn’t even get up when it happened. I got him up.
Tagged with: attitude, clean desk, joe, optimism
In January of 2008, I created a habit of clearing off my desk at end of every work day. I blogged about it relentlessly, since it was one of the first daily habits I really managed to create and it had such an impact on my productivity.
Tagged with: clean desk, habits
I’m not so keen on New Year’s Resolutions. I think we tend to make them when we get caught up in the hopeful feelings that a fresh, new year brings. But I think they’re frequently not realistic. And we don’t give them enough time. And when one goes by the wayside, we give up hope on all of them.
Tagged with: aby garvey, clean bureau, clean desk, email, goals, habits, resolutions, shannon wilkinson
I have this clean desk policy that I’ve been blogging about since 2008. Basically, I make sure I clean my desk off at the end of every business day. It’s glorious and it helps me hit the ground running when I arrive at my desk in the morning.
Tagged with: clean desk, paper management, paper piles, pendaflex
I’m going to be 50 next year and like many people my age, my vision isn’t what it used to be. Reading, in particular can be challenging. I’ve been wearing progressive lenses (distance vision in the top, reading vision in the bottom, with a little intermediate in between) for some years.
Tagged with: clean desk, email, habits, irritations, routines
I go on and on here about the value of clearing off your desktop at the end of the work day. I’ve been doing it daily for three years and it’s really enhanced my productivity. It’s now such a habit that I’d kind of forgotten about the scary, teetering pile of paper that can pollute your desktop. (Though I do sometimes let the paper in my inbox — which is not on my desk — pile up.)
Tagged with: blogs, clean desk, freelance success, jennifer hull, paper piles
As I’ve written about before, I’ve had some success in recent years in creating some really meaningful habits. For example, I now automatically clear my desk at the end of each workday. That allows me to hit the ground running in the morning and helps me keep my head clear about what I need to do. I used the Don’t Break the Chain method to help me build that habit.
Tagged with: clean bureau, clean desk, don't break the chain, habits
I’ve written here before about the importance of habits and routines to make your life easier. I call it automating your life. Over the past couple of years, I’ve created some habits which have helped me maintain order around my home and office. (This is huge, because I’m a naturally messy person.)
Tagged with: aby garvey, clean desk, flylady, habits, routines
On January 5, 2008 I resolved to clear my desk off every day at the end of the workday. I envisioned sitting down at my desk every morning with a clear desk and hoped that it would help me start the day on the right foot.
Tagged with: clean bureau, clean desk, don't break the chain, habits, routines
My point: I didn’t clear off my desk yesterday before ending the work day. The reason is that end of the work day didn’t involve my desk. But still, it was a shock to arrive at my desk this morning and see some clutter on it. The worse part is that it was very little clutter—it would have literally taken about 60 seconds or less to put everything away.
Tagged with: accountability, clean desk, desk, don't break the chain, ikea, motivation, sally brown
Back at the beginning of 2008, I blogged about my constant craving for order as reflected in my January 1 journal entries year after year
Tagged with: clean desk, don't break the chain, goals, habits, new year, productivity
As I’ve endlessly documented in this blog, I vowed this year to form the habit of clearing my desk at the end of each work day. The idea was that I would start work each morning with a clear desk, a clear mind, and major productivity. It’s something that I’ve strived for for decades and never been able to achieve.
Tagged with: accountability, clean desk, desk, don't break the chain, motivation, productivity
I just have to write once again about the joys of my clean-desktop lifestyle.
Tagged with: clean desk
The habit I’ve been trying to instill with the Don’t Break the Chain method that I wrote about in a recent post is clearing my desktop at the end of the workday.
Tagged with: accountability, clean desk, decluttering, desk, don't break the chain, goals, habits, motivation, productivity, time management, workspace
As part of my new emphasis on time management this year, I started off the new year by checking out some productivity blogs. I came across this great post on the wonderful blog Lifehacker that introduced to me a concept that in just a few short days has really had an impact on me.
Tagged with: clean desk, don't break the chain, goals, habits, motivation, time management