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Declutter Your Office and Make Room for Career Success!

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Organizing Your Office

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Declutter Your Office & Make Room for Success!

Regardless of who you work for, having a reasonably neat and organized office is a great way to enhance the image that you are a productive asset to your organization.   Having too much stuff in your office, or keeping your office messy, makes it look like you are overwhelmed, stressed out and could never handle more responsibility.

Not only that, holding on to too much stuff creates negative energy that keeps you stuck in the past and not ready to take on new assignments, challenges and maybe even a promotion! If your priorities are clear and you really want to succeed and achieve your goals, you need to be able to let go of things from the past that no longer serve your needs in getting your job done.

Decluttering does NOT mean you have to be austere, minimalist, or hide everything away.  If you are a visual person that would NEVER work!  It’s okay to keep things in sight, but if you want to succeed, you need to keep your office reasonably neat so that you don’t attract negative attention to yourself in your work environment. 

Here’s a 5-day plan for getting your office looking like you are ready for success!  Next chapter, we’ll organize what’s left!

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7BDAY ONE

Reduce the personal items & decorations! It’s a good idea to keep personal stuff in your office to a minimum, especially in a corporate office, even if they don’t have a formal policy. 10 - 20 personal items is a reasonable goal to shoot for.  You don’t want your office to look like you don’t have a home where you can keep your personal things!  You also don’t want to make it look like you are more focused on doing personal things when you should be working.  You want your office to give the impression that you are competent, professional and ready to take on new challenges and succeed! Once you’ve chosen your favorite 10 – 20 personal items, pack up the rest and take them home, or even better, donate or recycle some of it!

7BDAY TWO

Scan your office surfaces to identify and either relocate, donate, recycle or trash any clutter in your office. Here are some questions to ask yourself to help you decide what’s clutter in your office.

• Do I really need this item to do my job?  When was the last time I used this?  If you don’t’ need it or you rarely use it, give it a home out of your prime working space.  You can send it to storage, put it in an archive, give it away, etc. If you need it and use it often, give it a permanent home where it’s handy and convenient. 
• Does this item motivate me or help me achieve goals and get my projects done on-time? If so, give it a home.  If not, it’s clutter and has to go!
• Is this item in good working condition?  If it’s broken and you haven’t bothered to repair it for more than a couple months, get rid of it! 
• Do I really love this?  If you love it, but don’t use it often, it should be well taken care of, protected, displayed, and placed somewhere well out of your prime working space. 

8BDAYS THREE & FOUR

Purge your office files and paperwork. Take one drawer at a time and scan the largest files.  What can you get rid of?  Completed projects over a year old, old contracts, old vendor info, old employee benefit info, etc are great candidates to either recycle, purge or send to storage.

9BDAY FIVE

Purge all your other storage spaces for anything you no longer need and use!  Then take yourself out for a nice lunch to celebrate!

10BMAINTAIN!

Once you’ve cleared the clutter, maintain your new look by scanning your office daily or weekly with an eye to getting rid of what is no longer needed. 

Decluttering your office sets the stage for getting organized and being more productive.  It frees up  tuck energy and helps you become ready for continued or increased success in your career! 

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© 2007 Ariane Benefit

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The Top 50 Productivity Blogs (most of which you haven’t heard about) | zen habits

I'm so excited that Zen Habits blog has named the Neat Living blog to The Top 50 Productivity Blogs !

Zen Habits is a really neat blog by a heartfelt guy named Leo with lots of excellent tips to help you become more productive and create habits that serve your goals.  Here's the story of how this "regular" guy who is also a father to 6 kids, quit smoking, became a runner and became an early riser, and started Zen Habits.

Zen Habits covers achieving goals, productivity, being organized, GTD, motivation, eliminating debt, saving, getting a flat stomach, eating healthy, simplifying, living frugal, parenting, happiness, and successfully implementing good habits.

Stop by and visit and check out these great posts while you're there!

Email Zen: Clear Out Your Inbox

Top 10 Productivity Hacks - Overview

Habit 4: My Morning Routine  including how he sets MITs for the day Love this!

Quote for the Day from Zen Habits:

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit."
Aristotle

Show Us Your Desk Challenge!

Several professional organizers and bloggers from around the world have risen to the challenge to show us their desks!  It's so interesting to see where & how people really work!

Here's my desk shown without neatening anything up.  It's a bit messy at the moment, but I am organized and do have homes for everything so I can make it look really neat when I need to : ) But honestly, some days it's even messier than this! 
(Click the photo to see it larger) See a photo of my other even messier desk here as well.

While you are here, why not pick up my FREE 22 page ebook "Neat Living Goes to the Office" which has over 75 organizing tips for your papers and desk! 

Thanks to the following courageous bloggers and professional organizers for bravely grabbing that camera and baring it all for us to learn from! (I'll add to the list as more people participate. It's not too late to send me a link to photos of your desk!  Let's see how long we can make this list!)

Gretchin Rubin, NYC author of the brilliant "Happiness Project" blog shows us her neat & organized desk where she gets her books written. 4/3

Jeri Dansky, Professional Organizer, Cat Lover, & Blogger from Half Moon Bay, California shows us her beautifully organized desk complete with cats. 4/3

Laura, from the Organizing Junkie shows off her very organized desk in her office in Canada. 4/6

Marcia Francois, a Professional Organiser and Coach in South Africa.  Check out her **3** Desks!   4/7

Aby Garvey, professional organizer and it looks like she's an interior designer too.  Her desk & office is gorgeous!  I can't wait to decorate my office.  I'm still living with the furniture my husband & I blended when we moved in together.  By the end of the year my goal is to create my dream office..and this office is an inspiration for that!   I also sat next to Aby at the National Association for Professional Organizers conference workshop on Performing Needs Assessments  last year in Boston!  She's come a long way in the past year! 4/7

Monica Ricci, one of the amazingly talented professional organizers on HGTV's Mission Organization who inspired me to become a professional organizer, shows us her desk in Atlanta!  She also hosts a neat radio show called Organization Nation. 4/9

Dawn from Frugal For Life shows us her desk at home AND at work! 4/9

Brandie Kajino from Organize, Simplify, Transform has joined the party!  4/10

Meg from Future Queen of Organizing blog.

Dr. Amie Ragan, the Psychology of Clutter - A psychologist's blog covering some of the really deep isues behind why we hold on to our clutter.  You must see this one! 4/14

Janet Barclay, from the Organized Assistant has shown us her desk and workstation too!  4/14

Megan Spears, from the Disorder2Order Blog 4/14

Beth Dargis, the life coach from My Simpler Life has bared it all and gives us a full tour of her desk! 4/16

Jessica Duquette, Professional Organizer & Blogger from LA (and a great friend) has done it!  She has shown us her desk, given us a tour, and is offering a free "organizing your desk" lesson.  4/16

Mark Shead, my new blogger friend from Productivity 501.  What a zen like work space!  added 6/12/07

It's never too late to send me your link!  : )

Who's next?  It's not too late to join us!!  Just leave me a comment with a link to your photos and I'll add you to the list here!

New Credit Card Scam Alert - Never give your PIN to someone who calls you!

Received this in an email and checked it out.  It's not a hoax.  Unfortunately it's very real so be careful!  It's not really about organizing, but I consider this a "Public Service Message"   : )   

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The scam works like this: Person calls you and says,

"This is (name), and I'm calling from the Security and Fraud Department at VISA. My Badge number is 12460. Your card has been flagged for an unusual purchase pattern, and I'm calling to verify. This would be on your VISA card which was issued by (name of bank). Did you purchase an Anti-Telemarketing Device for $497.99 from a Marketing company based in Arizona ?"

When you say "No", the caller continues with,

"Then we will be issuing a credit to your account. This is a company we have been watching and the charges range from $297 to $497, just under the $500 purchase pattern that flags most cards. Before your next statement, the credit will be sent to (gives you your address), is that correct?"

You say "yes". The caller continues -

"I will be starting a Fraud investigation. If you have any questions, you should call the 1- 800 number listed on the back of your card (1-800-VISA) and ask for Security. You will need to refer to this Control Number. The caller then gives you a 6 digit number. "Do you need me to read it again?"

Here's the IMPORTANT part on how the scam works. The caller then says,

"I need to verify you are in possession of your card". He'll ask you to "turn your card over and look for some numbers".

There are 7 numbers; the first 4 are part of your card number, the next 3 are the security Numbers' that verify you are the possessor of the card. These are the numbers you sometimes use to make Internet purchases to prove you have the card. The caller will ask you to read the 3 numbers to him. [These are the PIN numbers you need to make purchases]

After you tell the caller the 3 numbers, he'll say, "That is correct, I just needed to verify that the card has not been lost or stolen, and that you still have your card. Do you have any other questions?"

After you say No, the caller then thanks you and states, "Don't hesitate to call back if you do", and hangs up.

You actually say very little during the call, and they never ask for or tell you the Card number. But after we were called on Wednesday, we called back within 20 minutes to ask a question. Are we glad we did! The REAL VISA Security Department told us it was a scam and in the last 15 minutes a new purchase of $497.99 w as charged to our card.

Long story - short - we made a real fraud report and closed the VISA account. VISA is reissuing us a new number.

What the scammers want is the 3-digit PIN number on the back of the card. Don't give it to them. Instead, tell them you'll call VISA or Master card directly for verification of their conversation.

The real VISA told us that they will never ask for anything on the card as they already know the information since they issued the card! If you give the scammers your 3 Digit PIN Number, you think you're receiving a credit. However, by the time you get your statement you'll see charges for purchases you didn't make, and by then it's almost too late and/or more difficult to actually file a fraud report.

What makes this more remarkable is that on Thursday, I got a call from a "Jason Richardson of Master Card" with a word-for-word repeat of the VISA scam. This time I didn't let him finish. I hung up! We filed a police report, as instructed by VISA. The police said they are taking several of these reports daily!

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Don't let this happen to you!  : )

UPDATE: Where to buy Smead® FasTab™ Hanging File Folders

Today I found 2 online sources that are now selling the Smead® FasTab Hanging Folders!!  YAY... I looked the other day and there were none.

For now, they only come in 1/3-Cut, Moss, Box Of 20.  They are not cheap, but I suspect the price will come down and more colors will be added if they catch on.  At least they aren't that ugly standard dark green!  I hope they come out with red, purple & bright yellow hanging file folders soon! : )

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Office Depot Online

http://www.officedepot.com/products/FasTab-Hanging-Folders-Letter-Size-Moss/292878/

Quill Office Supply Online

http://www12.quillcorp.com/catalog/browse/skuset.asp?PageType=2&PromotionID=2&PromoCategoryID=219&SkuSetID=45242&PromoCategory=Hanging+File+Folders

REVIEW

You can also read another review of these folders and other new offers from SMEAD by Jeri Dansky here:

http://jdorganizer.blogspot.com/2007/03/3-new-filing-products-from-smead.html

She doesn't like that you can't easily do straight-line filing but for me,  I feel you CAN still do straight-line filing but do it within themes and subcategories.  For example, I like to use different colors for each theme, as shown in the photo here, but for now...that won't work with these new files.

What I would do instead is use one straight line to the left for financial files, (which are green) the center could be your health related files, (which are yellow here) the right could be for your legal and critical docs archives (not shown here they are in the archives).

I totally agree with Jeri and Monica Ricci that the Smead anti-microbial file folders are completely unnecessary.

Enjoy!

Create a New Filing System in Minutes with Smead FasTab Hanging Folders

One of the things I dislike most about creating a filing system is dealing with those pain in the neck plastic tabs you have to put on hanging files.  Are you one of those too?  If so, I've got great news for you! 

I got a sample in the mail last week of a new Hanging File design called FasTab by SMEAD.  I love them! And here's why.

I'm a "semi-reformed" pile person who used to avoid creating a hanging file system for my paperwork because I hated messing with those little plastic tabs and creating labels.  Ultimately I had to get over it and accept the fact that I had to deal with plastic tabs in order to function better.  There was no alternative. Till now.  SMEAD has recognized that there are a lot of people like me who hate those plastic tabs and they have created an alternative that is faster and easier to maintain! 

Here's what I love about them.

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FEWER STEPS!

Creating the files in one thing, but to maintain files with lost plastic tabs takes a lot of extra steps. You have to:

1. Pull out a hanging file folder
   (and if you don't keep extra folders in your file drawer means you also have to open those awful boxes they come in and risk a paper cut!  Then you have to close the box : )
2. Get out the plastic tab
3. Create a label
4. Insert label into tab
5. Attach label to hanging file.
6. If you want to center the tab you have to count the little holes.
7. Insert paper and put away.

This is just more time and energy than I want to give to staying organized!  Call me lazy or call me "Innovative."  I  just happen to fit the Organizing Style Lanna Nakone describes as "Innovating" in Organizing for Your Brain Type: Finding Your Own Solution to Managing Time, Paper, and Stuff .   One of the defining features of creative people with an Innovating organizing style is this:

"If they have to do one more step than necessary, they'll avoid it,"

With these new folders, it goes like this:

1. Pull out one of the extra files you keep handy in the drawer.
2. Label it with a Black Sharpie pen or with a p-touch.
3. Insert paper and put away.

Much better! 

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EASY TO READ LARGE TABS

In order to be able to read the labels, I bought 3.5 in plastic tabs for my hanging files.  The FasTabs tab is 4 inches wide - standard.   (I measured).  So now I can save money too. ______________________

STANDARD TAB POSITIONS CAN BE USED TO CREATE SUB-CATEGORIES

These hanging files have 3 standard positions so you don't have to fuss about  where to attach the tab. I like my files to be all in the same position, but I vary that position to create sub-categories.  e.g., investment, retirement, & insurance files to the left, personal financial files such as checking, credit card, & monthly bills to the middle, business financial files to the right.  So that will work for me.

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LESS WASTE

I buy 3.5 in plastic tabs for my hanging files so that I can read them and had to recycely the plastic tabs. With these built in larger tabs, there is no waste at all.

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ARE THEY STURDY?

They seem pretty sturdy to me for normal home use...maybe not so good an office where they are frequently accessed.  But then again, I've seen a lot of beat up plastic tabs as well.

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WHAT IF YOU HAVE TO CHANGE THE LABEL?

I find that my files don't change much because I don't use company names on them. (Precisely because I hate having to change the plastic tabs.)  So for example, instead of Wachovia, I just have Joint Checking.  So even though my bank has changed names 4 times in 6 years... I have never had to change the tab : )

But if you do need to change the label, all you need in a standard file folder label or a new P-Touch label.

P.S.

In addition to the above, I like that:

• For pilers, using these folders is likely to be a much easier transition from not having any vertical files at all.
• The hanging rods don't slide out!

Learn more about  FasTab by SMEAD.   NOTE:  I have not yet found these in stores...or anywhere online...but I suspect it will be coming soon!

I had Lunch with Jessica Duquette This Weekend!

One of the best side benefits of blogging is getting to know other bloggers and making new friends!  This past weekend I had the pleasure of finally getting to meet Jessica Duquette, my "sister" professional organizer from the Los Angeles, CA area.  She is the heart and soul behind http://www.its-not-about-your-stuff.com/ and her services website is at http://www.inperfectorder.com/

She is orginally from New York City, and was back home to do a week-long organizing makeover in CT starting on Monday.  I don't know how she does it.  I can't imagine traveling across the country to organize someone else's home when you aren't even able to sleep in your own home!  I'm afraid I would miss my husband and 3 kids kitties way too much.  But she tells me she loves the adventure of it, so I'm happy for her and her lucky clients!

Jessica and I have spoken on the phone many times and shared ideas and advice on how we run our business, our blogs, handle client situations and even on personal matters.  So meeting her in person was easy, I felt like I've known her for years.  It was so nice to go out for lunch & get to see her smiling face while were talking!   

Alan & I also visited with her in her Dad's NYC apt. for a while and got to check out her amazing collection of Young Living Essential Oils.  We left smelling awesome after testing out so many oils.  I love essential oils and use them as perfume and as air fresheners.  My favorite Young Living Essential Oil is Magnify Your Purpose™.  It is a blend of Sandalwood, rosewood, sage, nutmeg, patchouli, cinnamon bark, and ginger.  YUM!   

I wear this all the time and people often ask me why I smell so good.  It's the best!  Young Living describes the Magnify Your Purpose™ blend as follows.  It stimulates creativity, desire, focus, and motivation. It helps foster a positive attitude, encouraging you to rise above adversity, seize the initiative, overcome procrastination and self-pity, and magnify your life's purpose.  (What could be a better mantra than this?) 

I use the oils as aromatherapy in my office to help me be more focused, productive, and relaxed.  I keep a few with me to help clients as needed if they enjoy aromatherapy and many do : ) Essential Oils are so much better for you than using chemical air fresheners and Young Living is one of the best quality oils you can buy. See the U.S. Product List for a description of all the oils: http://www.youngliving.us/US/products.asp  If you want to consider purchasing any of the oils, contact Jessica!

Do Professional Organizers Keep Their Desks Neat All the Time? See for Yourself!

UPDATED - 8/09

This weekend, Monica Ricci  (who is hosting the HGTV Spring Get Organized Challenge! for the next eight weeks) and I were emailing and discussing Meyers Briggs personality types. On one website, my personality type (ENTP) was described as "messy & disorganized"  SEE:  http://similarminds.com/jung/entp.html    (WHO ME??? SEE my rebuttal at the end of this post)

Monica on the other hand was described and "neat & organized".   So Monica had the brilliant idea to post pictures of our desks on our blogs so we could see for ourselves!  I thought it would be great to challenge all professional organizers who blog as well as other bloggers to do the same thing! 

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Welcome to my Office!  Here's my desk pix taken at 7:00 AM  this morning.

Desk 1 - Where I write, talk on the phone, process mail, work on projects, to do's etc.

To the left on the wall are my horizontal trays which allow me to indulge my "piler" tendencies without looking too messy.  One tray has a box for me to dump coupons in, and one for me to put things I want to talk to my husband about, and one for my P-Touch)

I also keep my calendar (the black open binder) to the left.  The purple folders are my client files, (which I wrote about here - Clutter Clearing Pays Off Big Time!) The yellow folders are my project files. My office phone which you can barely see is in front of my purple files.  My backup phone (home line) is the one on the upper shelf.

On my desk are projects and TO DOs in progress.  To the right, my printer, scanner, copier & pens. My recycle bins for paper and plastic are under my desk drawers, and my financial files are to my right.  My shredder is on the floor under my computer desk.

This 2 desk setup allows me to open mail and then instantly either toss, recycle, shred, put dates in my calendar, list to dos in my to do notebook, put the papers in my action files, make a call, type an email, or just file it away.  It may not be extremely pretty or neat, but it works for me!

DESK 2 - My computer Desk, with a home for my cat Alex!

Here you can see all my timers I use to keep myself on track and to time projects when I'm doing client work in my office vs. on-site. My inbox is to the left as is my essential oil diffuser and oils. 

And there's Alex, my adorable cat, who you may remember from these posts a year ago when he took over my TO DO basket!

http://blog.neatandsimple.com/blog/2006/02/heres_a_purrfec.html

http://blog.neatandsimple.com/blog/2006/02/purrfect_conten.html

Okay, so my desks are NOT perfectly neat.  But do I look terribly messy & disorganized to you? Let me know what you think & leave me a comment!  

While you are here, why not <B>pick up my FREE organizing and clutter tips in my ebooks</B>

And now I challenge my organizer and blogger friends...Can we see your desks???  See my complete list of organizers' and bloggers' who have shown us their desks!

Leave me a comment and let us know when you've shown us your desk!  : )   I'll add you to the list here!

My rebuttal to the description of my personality type as seen at: 

http://similarminds.com/jung/entp.html

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acts without thinking, wild and crazy, dangerous, fearless, careless, thrill seeker, life of the party,  experience junky

(not since I was a teenager - I admit I did ride my bike down a set of stairs when I was 12 and ended up in the hospital...and I did hitchhike to FL when I was 13.  So I suppose I was rather fearless then, but today?  I'm very boring and I generally think a lot before acting : )

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risk taker, outgoing, social, open, rule breaker, adventurous, spontaneous,i mproviser, not into organized religion, pro-weed legalization, adaptable, comfortable in unfamiliar situations, appreciates strangeness, (generally true)

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messy, disorganized, !!!!!  (I can be at times when I'm really involved in a project, used to be worse and I do have to work at staying organized...it was never extreme, though.)

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dominant (my husband calls me "the will" because I make things happen.  So yeah, at times, even though I hate to admit it - I do have dominant tendencies and tend to get my way a lot at home)

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emotionally stable, talented at presentation, (I hope this is true!)

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player, always joking, aggressive, attention seeking, insensitive,  (nobody who knows me would agree with these, I do have a sense of humor, but i tend to be serious and philosophical, I'm also very sensitive to people's feelings and don't like to call attention to myself other than through writing and teaching.)

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carefree, easy going, not easily offended  (I try to be these!)