What You Need To Know About… Being More Organised At Work

It's a new year, which is a great opportunity to get rid of those old habits and create a few good ones. One of the areas in which many of us struggle is keeping on top of a demanding workload but a few little adjustments to your day can help keep your stress levels at a manageable level. 1) Clear the clutter Over the course of the year, your desk can accumulate a ridiculous amount of debris and most of it is completely unnecessary. Clear desk equals a clear mind so kickstart your January by doing a doing a major clear-out. Organise those files into folders, throw out anything that you no longer need and give yourself some space to work with. 2) Get a diary We're not talking about sharing all your innermost feelings but instead, make a point of writing things down so that you can see all of your deadlines at a glance. As soon as a meeting, event, submission date is set, pop it into your diary and save yourself from scrambling through your emails at the last minute. 4) Invest in some Post-It's We honestly don't know how we survived without these. Something important to remember? Pop a Post-It on the corner of your computer. Just throw them away when they're done and only use one or two per day. 5) Make lists your friend We never met a list we didn't like and it is one of the best ways to keep on top of your multitasking. If you're a tech addict, opt for an app such as Asana or stick to good old pen and paper. Take ten minutes at the start of your week to think about all of things that you need to get done and break it down into a day-by-day planner. Add any new tasks as you receive them and if things start mounting up, be honest about the items that really need to get done immediately and start with them. 6) Stop avoiding things We all do it. You don't want to do something so you keep avoiding it by doing something else. Unfortunately, this just means that you'll be stressing about it for longer and then doing it in a rush. Bite the bullet and do it now, it can't possibly be as bad as you think. 7) Know your limits In the office, you don't want to disappoint and inevitably end up saying 'yes, yes, yes' to every request that comes at you. However, if the end result is frustration and a hastily thrown-together result, this is really counterproductive. Do what you can manage, prioritise your most important tasks and if unable to handle your workload, talk to your boss about delegating something to your co-workers or pushing a deadline to the following day. 8) Stop compulsively checking your email Studies have shown that the average office workers checks their email up to 30 times every hour, which is a complete waste of time. How to break the cycle? - Don't use your inbox as a to-do list - Save files to your desktop or a storage service like Dropbox - Tell your colleagues to call you if a query is urgent - Turn off notifications and give yourself allocated slots throughout the day to check your inbox. 9) Get away from your desk Making a point of stepping away from your screen once or twice a day. It's only a little thing but taking time out to make a cup of tea will allow you to catch your breath, give your brain a break and return refreshed and ready for action.