Spring brings thoughts of warm weather, outdoor activities ... and cleaning. Although few people truly took forward to the last item on this list, almost everyone understands it needs to get done.
Don’t concentrate solely on your closet, dining-room table or other household areas. Also look to your workspace. Chances are your desk and computer could use some freshening up, too.
Here are some of the benefits of cleaning around the office:
It increases your efficiency:
Filing emails about the training session you organised six months ago, deleting outdated messages that clog your inbox and going through papers crowding your desk will make it easier to find necessary information. This can be especially important when under a tight deadline or if you’re out of the office unexpectedly and need a colleague to fill in for you.
It reduces your stress:
Having a cluttered workspace can be stressful. Just think of the last time you had to rifle through a stack of papers or a mountain of emails for a single buried document. Tidying up can reduce your feeling of pressure and constraint.
Enhance your image at work:
When you entertain guests at home, you usually straighten up beforehand so people feel welcome — and impressed. Take the same approach with your workspace. The appearance of a person’s workspace affects their perception of that person’s professionalism. The tidier your desk, the more put together you’ll seem.
Uncover forgotten items:
One immediate impact of cleaning your workspace is discovering forgotten ideas from past brainstorming sessions, assignments that never made it to your to-do list or emails that have gotten lost among other unread items. Even if you don’t consider yourself particularly messy or unorganised, it’s easy for any number of things to slip through the cracks during a busy workday.
Gain a sense of accomplishment:
Don’t forget that cleaning up simply feels good. Unlike other items on your to-do list, giving your desk a good once-over can be crossed off relatively quickly, and you can see tangible results afterward.
— Agencies
