After several futile attempts, it’s time to ask: How do you Declutter your home office?. It’s time to learn and, hopefully, keep it that way.

Clutter means stress

A cluttered work space is interpreted by the brain as extra stress, since everything around you requires your attention. The irony, however, is that the office looks like this because it was the brain who fooled into thinking that we need everything we have. That’s why it’s important to clean the home office as often as necessary.

Before we get started, though, here are a few questions that will help making the process easier:

Ask yourself

Do I really need this? When was the last time I used it? How old is it? Is it here because I need it or for sentimental purposes?

Keep in mind, when a home office becomes a death trap, it loses its purpose completely. The whole idea of making room for an office within your home is to find a small yet comfortable place where you can carry out several tasks at the same time –a quite impossible endeavor when you’re wasting more time trying to find things buried in your desk rather than working.

Your life in a box

How to get rid of this problem for once and for all? Put everything inside boxes, and start to sort between things you have been using for the last weeks, months or so, and items that are a year old. Declutter anything memorabilia related, brochures, and or drafts.

Once everything has been sorted out, make a smaller pile and give each item a “home”. This means the desktop is no longer an option to pile up “rogue” elements. Be very strict with this step as it could make or break your office order. However, be warned. This part of the process could take longer depending and the size of the mess.

Say “Cheese”!

After organizing your items in a way that works you –keeping your most immediately used things closer and the least far from reach, i.e.- take a picture of your home office. Think about it as a third eye. Consider that sometimes your eyes are so used to seeing the office in a chaotic mess of stationery and computer supplies it might be hard to notice if there is any room for improvement in the mess. A picture will help you detect any “blind” spots within your work space that could potentially develop into another cluttering hazard.

Finally, challenge yourself to maintain your personal working space in spit-spot condition. The best way to do this is by taking a few minutes every evening to organize your desk, making sure that the most necessary elements are all ready for you. With some discipline you’ll notice how much time you save by doing this. Plus, you’ll find yourself working more quickly and efficiently.