Organizing Your Home Business
Organization; the bane of many. How can something that sounds so simply as organizing be so very difficult? And why do the majority of us get so frustrated when we attempt to organize a mess?
Well, unfortunately, there’s no ‘easy out’ for home business organization. But if you take small, simple steps and stick with them, it won’t be hard to keep up with the growing demand your home business has for organization.
File Folders are Everything
No matter how much of your work is done on the computer, chances are, you still have papers. From receipts to things you’ve printed out, clients information and more - we all have some hard copies of things laying around, after all.
Buying a small file cabinet is the answer! You can get a very cheap one from any office supply store, and a pack of files should start you off well. Keeping everything that you have in hard copies filed and out of the way keeps things flowing, and make sure you never have an overflow of papers you don’t know what to do with.
Keep Everything Not Related to Business Away
No matter if we’re talking about the files in your computer, office space, or something else entirely, remove everything that isn’t business related. It keeps things flowing smoothly, and anything personal can be a distraction. Avoid opening or downloading anything that has your personal interest on your business computer, and try to make a strict, ‘this-is-an-office’ rule when it comes to your home office.
Keep Track of your Time
Oftentimes, we miss an important phone call, meeting, or even TV show related to our business because we can’t keep track of our time to save our life! Use a calendar, either online (Like Yahoo! Calendar) or offline, depending on your level of tech savvy-ness, and always have a place for to-do lists and reminders.
Clean your Desk Each Evening
This may seem silly, but there’s nothing more motivating than sitting down to a clean desk in the morning. Each evening, make sure to sort what needs to be sorted, clean what needs to be cleaned, and leave that night with a clean, eye pleasing desk. You’ll find yourself more willing to get to work in the morning, and if you’re having a bad one, you’ll be a little less aggravated with it!
Get Rid of the Old
Have you used it in a year? Has it been hiding under that huge stack of papers, forgotten? Toss it!
Don’t keep pens, papers, or anything else that you haven’t used in six months to a year. There’s no reason, and it can eliminate used space, giving you a more open look. If you insist on keeping it, file it away, put it in a closet, or another room. Just keep it away from your work space!
Look at your Office Like a Kindergarten Classroom
Look at your office like it’s a child’s school room. Really! Make sure everything is for a purpose, and section off special ‘areas’. One area is going to be for most of your work - that’s the desk! Another area is filing, where your file cabinet goes, along with a chair for those long filing sessions. Another can be mailing, and another can be client contacts. Keeping things separate and clean can be the best ways to go about things.
Make Sure your Office Fits you
So, some of us work best when our walls are a gentle mocha color, with warm accents, colorful pictures on the wall, a decorative, stylish couch that’s inviting and comfortable, and our desk facing towards the window. Others work best when they have no distractions - back to the window, non distracting colors, and nothing on the walls.
Find what works for you, and run with it. If you find plants and pictures comforting, go for it; if they distract you, move them. Create a work environment that’s perfect for working, and if you find something that’s too distracting, force yourself to get it out of your work space. Even if you enjoy it!
Keep it Organized…
…and your business will be fruitful. Many failed businesses are unorganized, don’t know their direction, and can’t find it through the mess. Know who you are, what you’re doing, and where you can find it!