Do you have a work area that is next to impossible to find anything at all? Anyone who has worked with a deadline knows the feeling of being more focused and drawn on your task at hand. Your attention is too preoccupied to even notice that slowly your desk is cluttered with files, post-it notes, papers and folders piled and assorted work-related devices and even personal items. The easier it is to accumulate clutter is how harder it is to sweep it off. Follow these simple tips to have a comfortable and productive time whether you’re at a desk at home or at an office.

1. Clear the walk-way in your work area to create a spacious office. Take out unnecessary office equipment and boxes stored to acquire extra space.
2. Plan your storage and group things you need to store into categories. Before a sheer volume of paper and printouts drown you, choose what type of storage is appropriate for the space you have available. Local supply stores have a wide array of movable filing solutions like durable plastic file containers with different shapes and sizes. Resist on housing your desk with project files. Label your shelves and file folders so that when you’re trying to look for something, you won’t be greeted with a mountain of documents without names on it.
3. Do not go overboard and clutter up your desk with photos, personalized mugs, and mementos. If personalizing your space makes you feel more at home and productive, display a few that really mean something to you. Keep your new gadgets because it tends to distract from your work.
4. Take a few days to devote on dealing with your clutter to get things organized. Remove the bulk of mess in your workspace. Then take a few minutes at the end of each day to organize your things and remove the clutter that has accumulated on your desk. You may also try cleaning upon a weekly basis so that you don’t need to repeat the whole cleanup process from time to time. Learn to throw out, give things away, or discard things you don’t need to use.  If you’re doubtful about discarding something, put a date on it and if you haven’t used it by that date, remove it from your workplace.
5. Throw away the things you don’t need. Instead of just moving the mess on your desk into a drawer or at some place where you won’t see it. You should have a clear idea on what actually has to be there and keep only what you need .Don’t save anything if you don’t need to because the best way to keep your work space clean is to put all papers away by the end of the day. Keep magazines, media materials and even books unless you’re using them for your work to avoid distraction. Keep them out of sight especially if you need to focus for your work.
6. Place an inbox and outbox rack on your desk. Outbox rack is specifically for envelopes, letters,or any paper work that need to be sent or distributed to other people. While the inbox rack is for files or papers that you receive from other people that you need to read, sign, process, study or take at look at or anything that is addressed to you. This incoming and outgoing shelf can be a rack wherein you will assign and indicate the bottom layer as your inbox and the top layer as your outbox. In this way, other people would know where to place papers that goes for you and they would also know where to pick up the papers that they are expecting from you. This will also help you not to be confused and to get rid of excess material efficiently.