A clean space provides a positive mindset

It’s the first month of the year and there’s a lot of things to get done, but it seems that your work pile isn’t the only thing piling up. On January 11, make one of the first of things you do this year be tidying up with National Clean Off Your Desk Day.

Celebrated on the second Monday of every year, National Clean Off Your Desk Day is pretty straightforward: it’s a day to clean off your desk! When you spend any amount of time doing work on your desk, chances are it starts to get cluttered or the untouched corners begin accumulating dust. This goes for any surface you consider a workspace, not leaving much room to spread out your work or area to develop focus. Not only that, but messy desks also provide a place for bacteria to flourish, so it’s important to get these places cleaned and sorted out. Here are a few tips to help you tidy up:

• Empty out your desk. It helps to clean your area once you remove the items on it. This also helps you determine which things to keep and which things you don’t need.
• Clean the surface. You can use a damp cloth to clean and wipe off the dust on your desk. Disinfectant wipes and other cleaning supplies are also great to use, especially for the surfaces you often touch like the keyboard or mouse.
• Throw out what needs to be thrown out. After determining what items get to live another day on your desk, throw out the ones you won’t need anymore. Sort out what you’ll put into storage while piled up papers and unwanted clutter can go to the recycling bin.
• Organize your supplies. Your pens, papers, and post-its should have separate places of their own in your work area. Put the things you’ll be using regularly within arm’s reach and make sure to put them back on the area you’ve designated them to after each use.
• Try your best to maintain it. Now that your non-working pens are discarded and your papers are all orderly and organized, you should try to maintain your desk’s newly decluttered state. Keeping a trash can nearby should help prevent unwanted mess from piling up.

Cleaning your workspace is proven to have a number of benefits that help both physically and mentally, from allowing more space to move your work about to boosting your productivity and efficiency to get things done. And a clean desk just makes for a pleasing sight. Use this holiday to gain back that sense of serenity in your desk to aid in whatever work you’re up to.