We organize our pens, notecards, and other desk supplies, but have you ever considered WHERE they are organized? The proximity of your tools could mean huge changes for your productivity.


Physical Proximity Based On Use

In addition to bringing things back onto my desk as needed, as I wrote about last week, having things in your office organized by use is extremely helpful to keeping an effective workspace. I found that I would get into 1 particular set of files almost daily, while the rest of them were used only once a month. At first, I had all my files together until I realized I was wasting precious space next to me by having all of my files nearby just to easily reach the 1 file daily. To fix this problem, I made a special place in my desk for those files and then moved the file cabinet that I needed once a month to the farthest corner away from my desk. It may seem like a small thing, but removing things physically away from you can help you focus on the things more important for the moment.

This applies to everything on your desk. Do you have things across your office that you access every day, while things nearby that you rarely need? If you take just 5 min today to rearrange your office items, you could save an hour within just a couple weeks! TWEET THIS!

What things did you have to move in your office? A printer? Files? If you have an idea for this tip Tuesdays, feel free to write it in the comments or shoot me an email!