A cluttered space creates a cluttered mind. The office can get messy if you aren’t taking precautions to avoid it. Here are 9 creative storage and organization solutions to help you keep your office neat.
Declutter
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- This step to organizing your office is a given. It all begins with decluttering and cleaning everything up. Declutter by emptying out drawers of stuff you don’t use and shredding papers or documents that you don’t need. A fresh, clean workspace gives you the option to be creative with your storage technique—which you will see in this blog.
Hide your wires
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- Do you know those binder clips sitting in your desk that you hardly ever use? A creative storage solution is to use them to organize your USB cords and cables. All you have to do is clip them to the side of your desk, or wherever works best, and thread the cables through the metal part. This keeps your cords free of all those tangles that you dread untangling and makes for a more efficient work environment.
Create fun labels for everything around the office
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- Those cords you just organized could use some labeling, so you don’t have to follow a cord to the wall to figure out what belongs to what. You can use colored tape or a label maker to execute this tip, but we suggest using fun colors/patterns! Basic labels are fine too, but fun colors can spice up an otherwise boring (and usually stressful) area of the office.
- Making labels for folders, bins, and other things in your drawers can make for a more organized and efficient space as well. When you have a bunch of odds and ends (paper clips, binder clips, tacks, etc.) in your drawers, it’s best to put them in a little compartment that can be labeled so you know where they are at all times.
- Another creative storage solution you can utilize is drawer dividers. This makes things more visible in your drawers, while also being organized.
Use old containers as storage bins
There are a bunch of items around your house that just get thrown away when you use them all up. What you don’t think about is that there could be a second purpose for these items as a creative storage solution. Reusing containers around the office supports a green lifestyle and that’s always a positive.
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- Candle jars—scrape out the remaining bits of wax and take the sticker off. These become great storage containers and even better if they have a lid. It’s up to you if you want to take the next step to paint them or wrap them in fun paper. Chances are you have a mixture of big and small candles around the house, which leave you with many different options.
- Sanitizing wipe containers
- Crystal light containers
- Mason Jars—you can paint these to make them match your office decor, or leave them clear.
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Go paperless
This is another organizational strategy that supports sustainability in the office. You can avoid a lot of clutter in the office by just ditching the papers all together. You can use things like Google Docs to type up all of your documents or scan documents and put them in folders within Google Docs. This way you have all of your papers/paperwork digitally with you anywhere you go. There are other notetaking apps and storage apps you can use as well like Evernote, Microsoft OneNote or Dropbox, etc.
Reuse an old shutter
This can be a fun and decorative element to add to your office. You can refinish and paint it to make it look more aesthetically pleasing. Then you hang it on the wall and it can be used as a mail holder, holder for random papers or even pictures. This will keep your desk free of all the clutter that random papers bring.
Peg Board
Utilize a pegboard to hang things like plants, or store your office supplies. You can hang your scissors, pictures, or anything that matches the aesthetic of your office on the pegboard. This can save room on your desk and in your drawers as another way to avoid clutter.
Magazine Holders
Use magazine holders for loose papers laying around your desk. You could even create a storage system with labels if this is how you choose to organize all of your papers. Another creative thing to do with magazine holders is to create a mail system. Put one (or multiple) at the end of your desk for people to place documents in when you aren’t in the office.
Spice Rack
An interesting storage technique for all of your little loose ends is to use a rotating spice rack. You can put rubber bands, labels, paperclips, tacks, staples, etc., in spice containers and create a rotating rack for all of these items. You could even go as far as putting labels on the tops, so they are always readily available and easy to find.
There are many creative and fun ways to organize your office. You can choose to repurpose containers and items around your house, or go buy new organizational products—either option is great. Follow the tips in this blog to make your office aesthetically pleasing and organized like never before.