6/10/2021

10 tips on how to best organize your desk

Alessandro Lorenzi
Author

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Albert Einstein once said: "If a messy desk is a sign of a messy mind, of what then is an empty desk a sign?" For the great German physicist, developing the best ideas requires a certain degree of chaos. For us mere mortals, however, organizing the desk is A first step to increasing productivity.

If you work on the computer for many hours a day, you know how important order is. Having everything in its place helps you avoid wasting time and maintain high concentration.

Your PC in the center, a notepad always available, pens, pencils, and highlighters in plain sight. An organized desk helps you work faster and more effectively and also contributes to reducing stress levels. A tidy workstation communicates the feeling of having everything under control and being able to tackle any task.

To help you create a professional corner where you can achieve unprecedented results, we at Casavo have collected 10 ideas on how to organize a desk.

1. Create a comfortable space

To work well, an organized desk is not enough, but you also need a welcoming and stimulating space.

If you have an office, personalize your workstation with photographs, gadgets and maybe a plant that requires little attention to bring a little color to long days at the computer.

For those who work from home, however, it is important to try to carve out a small study dedicated solely to work. If you haven't already done so, we recommend reading our advice on how to furnish a home office corner before starting your desk.

2. Pay attention to the height of the monitor

Let's start with a very important tip for your health. When looking for ideas for organizing your desk, pay close attention to where to place the computer. Spending long hours in front of the monitor has negative effects on posture and eyesight. We often find ourselves unknowingly in poses worthy of authentic vultures, with our hunchback and nose just a few centimeters from the screen.

To limit the risks to your shoulders and spine, it is very important to keep your PC at the same height as your eyes. To bring it into the correct position, consider purchasing a raised stand to place on the table. There are all types, both for desktop computers and laptops.

If you want to go a step further, we recommend getting a stand that also allows you to work standing, so to vary your position from time to time and relieve tension from your shoulders, neck, and back.

3. Organize your desk with the right lights

Improving the lighting in your home or office is one of the factors that radically changes the quality of your work. Try to take advantage of natural light whenever possible by placing your workstation in front of a window. The view of the outside world improves your mood and allows you to take a look outside every now and then, away from the computer.

Today, desk lights have become very important, even for the many video calls that have become part of our work routines. For this reason, placing a good lamp on the table, perhaps with a not too aggressive light, is practically mandatory.

4. Keep wires and cables at bay

We live surrounded by cables of all kinds: to power the computer, to charge the phone, to listen to music on headphones. To organize your desk, also learn to keep this maze of black and white wires that create great confusion at bay. How? Try this:

  • tie the computer cables together with a rubber band to prevent them from flying around on their own;
  • Get a USB dock - a small platform to which you can connect external hard drives, flash drives, and all your other digital accessories;
  • Consider installing a wireless charging station for smartphones and tablets.

Reducing the number of wires around will immediately give your work table a more organized feel.

5. Use the walls for ideas and notes too

Sometimes a quick glance away from the monitor helps you organize your thoughts and achieve better results. If you have a blank wall near your table, transform it into a sort of vertical desk and organize it with a cork board on which to jot down ideas, deadlines, upcoming appointments, and sources of inspiration. You can also try chalkboard paint to write directly on the wall and then erase it easily.

6. Everything in its place

Let's move on to how to organize your desk with your work tools. Divide your tools into containers to create an orderly environment. Some examples? A pen holder, some document holders, a tray for paper clips, post-it notes, and USB sticks are more than enough to avoid the chaos of objects scattered everywhere. Don't forget a seemingly banal accessory, which actually makes all the difference: the wastebasket.

7. Keep only the necessary items within reach

Avoid keeping things you don't need on the table. Every time you finish a project, put away all the material you don't need and don't overdo it with stationery: as a general rule, a notepad, a black and a red pen, a pencil, and a highlighter are enough.

8. Make use of drawers

We can't talk about how to organize your desk without taking a moment to consider drawers. Organizing them rationally helps you have everything at hand whenever you need it. You could keep spare pens and notebooks there, for example, or your smartphone charger if you haven't installed a wireless charging station. Never forget that drawers are there to help you keep your table tidy!

9. The importance of silence

Carving out a moment of peace and silence is a perfect way to increase your attention span. An organized desk is a must-have for good noise-cancelling headphones, which can also be used for video calls. Block out the voices of colleagues or people who live with you and focus only on the things you have to do.

10. Always keep your desk tidy

Now that you've organized your desk, don't let laziness take over. Dedicate five minutes a day to keeping your table and drawers tidy. Throw away the papers at the end of the day, put away the folder you took out, put the pens in their pencil case or pen holder. In short, avoid leaving things you've finished using lying around. This will make it much easier to keep your desk tidy and clean.

Even if Einstein thought differently, organizing your desk is an excellent way to start creating an orderly and precise work environment, where you can give your best. Different points of view, but after all, it was dear Albert himself who explained to us that everything is relative in the universe.

If you've started working from home in recent months, you may have realized that your well-organized workstation isn't enough: the time has come to move to a larger apartment. Among the Casavo listings, you'll easily find the property that's right for you with all the space you need for your home office!

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