If you’re anything like me you’ve undoubtedly been seeing people online or on social media raving about “Tidying Up with Marie Kondo” the Netflix reality series about organizing professional Marie Kondo. Her idea about our spaces sparking joy got me thinking.
If tidying up is now on your radar for 2019 because you need it or because you’ve binged the entire “Tidying Up” series, don’t stop at your living space.
Tidy up home and office
We spend so much time in our work, whether it’s from home or away in an office, we need to remember to bring joy into our work spaces in the same way we bring joy into our homes. Why not take this opportunity to tidy up our office spaces? Between cluttered computers and catch all desk drawers there is a lot that can jumble our work life.
For me, a cluttered work space makes me stressed out. Even when I’m not thinking about the mess just having mess around me makes it hard to focus completely on the work at hand.
When you’re spending probably about 40 hours a week somewhere it’s important that you surround yourself with the joy you want to bring to the table every day. It’s a long process that involves bringing out everything you have stashed away in your desk, but it’s a worthwhile endeavor.
The KonMari Method
If you haven’t spent time with the KonMari method, it involves picking up each item and asking yourself if it sparks joy. If it does, keep it. If it doesn’t, thank it for its service and set it aside. The task itself is extremely organized in keeping the organizer’s heart in mind. You begin with clothes and work your way to personal items as a means to “hone” your joy sparking intuition.
Obviously, the task of organizing a workspace is much less time consuming than organizing an entire home, but the mentality of sparking joy remains the same.
Does it provide joy?
If something in your workspace is not sparking joy why should you keep it around?
Take some time, when you have it, to go through that pile of papers on your desk or shoved in a drawer. See what you need to keep, organize it and recycle or shred the rest. Do the same thing with the documents and files on your computer. Organize your email. Finally delete your email! I promise you don’t need that food order for the holiday party from 2014.
Don’t forget to test your office supplies. Pens do have an expiration and they don’t work forever. Take stock of what you actually use or need and consider donating the rest or asking your office mates (if you have them) if they need anything you have to spare.
If your desk is an absolute disaster this might seem like an overwhelming process. If it is, take your time. It doesn’t have to be all done at once, but you will feel better (and probably more productive!) with a clean work environment.
Plus, you’ll probably be able to find those papers you’ve been looking for!
While we can’t help tidy up your home or office like Marie Kondo… we can assist with your business growth with a mobile application. Contact us for more info on what it takes to get started and why your business needs a mobile app.
