Whether you are looking for work or you are back to the daily grind at the office- organizing your tasks and work space can help you efficiently achieve your daily goals.
FACTS:
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The average American wastes almost an hour a day (12 weeks/year) looking for things they know they own but can’t find, reported – Newsweek Magazine
- The desk of the average white collar worker holds 36 hours of uncompleted work. That desk’s occupant spends 3 hours per week sorting piles to find and organize the project/s being worked upon. -The Overload Syndrome, by Richard Swenson
- Sales reps in a survey were most productive when they assigned themselves only three tasks per day. It gave them a greater sense of accomplishment when they were able to cross off those tasks. – Accountemps
- Being more organized can also save you time and money and helps to prevent stress.
Tips to Getting Started
1. 
Make a to-do list. It may sound elementary, but this basic form of organizing thoughts and tasks can help you stay focused and achieve more over time. Everyone has different ways of creating a to-do list- so whether you write it all down, keep it on your phone, or create a list on an organizational site such as Evernote, it doesn’t matter- just get your goals organized in priority order! According to MindTools.com, if you use To-Do Lists, you will ensure that:
- You remember to carry out all necessary tasks
- You tackle the most important jobs first, and do not waste time on trivial tasks.
- You do not get stressed by a large number of unimportant jobs.
2. Sort and Separate. Have a bunch of papers or books or items that just keep piling up? Sort and separate them into groups based on how you would mentally label them- whether your labels are “Home, Work, School;” “Budget Sheets, Best Practice Guides, and communication;” or anything else- just make sure that the groups make sense to you. Now either file or compile these items in separate containers, so that you can easily find what you are looking for.
3. Organize your computer. Try to get files off the desktop—they are visual clutter. Reserve your desktop for the files you access every day. Create folders in your Documents folder to encompass a range of files: Recipes, Events, etcetera. Create categories and subcategories that make sense to you. Set up files for your e-mail inbox and sort e-mails after the first time you read them- this way you won’t waste time reading the same e-mail over and over again just to remember what it was about.
4. Think Long Term. The best way to keep track of longer term goals, projects, and future events, is to have a calendar that is frequently updated and easily accessible to you. Your to-do list may include items that will take you longer than a week or two- so make sure those “due dates” are on your calendar, as well. We suggest using Google Calendar (see these great Google Calendar organizational tips on Mashable), a calendar that you can access on your phone at all times, or a daily planner that can function as your to-do list and calendar all in one.
5. Throw it out! Clutter buster Mia Lotringer gave the following advice on WebMd.com:“Go through your items 
quickly and make snap judgments—that first inclination is generally a good one. Then repeat the process. Often, you will find more items that you can live without. If you are holding onto something in case you ‘might’ need it in the far off future, get rid of it! You can always buy whatever it is when you actually need it. (If you are a business, throw out all tax papers older than 11 years; individuals can safely throw out all financial papers older than seven years. Do keep birth and marriage certificates, social security cards, driver’s licenses and passports, along with the deed/title to your home, homeowner’s insurance in a safety deposit box or in a fireproof lock box and/or with copies with the family lawyer/financial advisor.)”
It only gets easier over time
Fortunately, according to the National Association of Professional Organizers, “once you learn good systems, habits, and tools, change becomes easier, as does bouncing back from an unexpected detour or period of feeling overwhelmed.”
