Chaos Control: Office Space

unaveragejane

Our challenge the next week will be to declutter our home office areas. Set up a filing system for important documents if you haven't already. Also, please share your genius ideas for organizing the office! Let's set a goal to have our desks cleaned off in the next 2 weeks.

sasq09

I need to organize our office stuff so badly! We don't have an office just a big living room that serves as an everything room lol. I'm in!

unaveragejane

Feel free to post pictures anytime!

bumpuser9353653

Yeah I need to go this for my desk at work. The home office is rarely used so it's in good shape.

sarenu1

I'll play, but I'll be doing this for my fabric and photos.

I filed most of my paperwork 2 weeks ago to clear my desk to move my sewing machine down.

For paperwork I usually create a new hanging file each year. Then I put two folders in it. Medical expenses and tax forms.

I have general folders for insurance and retirement funds that I keep and then shred every few years.

I do need a better system for manuals.

TJ1979

@sarenu1‌ You mean like appliance manuals? I 3 hole punch them and put them in a binder. I have an appliance binder, a garage equipment binder, furniture binder, etc.

flummadiddle85

Oh gawd.... that is probably the absolute worst room in the house. I feel like I kinda gave up on it since DH uses it quite a bit too. Anytime it gets organized, it only takes a day to be back the way it was. Plus, right now there's all this music scattered all over since we've been picking solos out for contest time.....

freezorburn

I need to do this too! Never really got a good filing system going since the last move, and the desk is generally a disaster area ... I don't really know where to start!

sarenu1

TJ1979 said:

@sarenu1‌ You mean like appliance manuals? I 3 hole punch them and put them in a binder. I have an appliance binder, a garage equipment binder, furniture binder, etc.

I'm not a huge fan of binders.  

I currently have them in hanging folders (which doesn't really work) and manila paper separator thing (technical I know)

Similar to this:

https://www.officedepot.com/a/products/502930/Smead-Expanding-Wallet-5-14-Expansion/

But it has about 5 pockets separating it.

My only problem is that it got wet once and destroyed.  I want to move all my manuals to the other room and possibly get 5 of these to separate them the same way you do.  And then separate them within the containers with labels.

redrockmama

I need to so this with my work office, its a disaster especially since I moved offices last week.

we don't have a home office but do have a shelf/counter where all of our mail ends up and other random things. I should clean that up too and figure out a mail sorting system.

TJ1979

OMG mail sorting.  What a wreck.  Anyone have suggestions on this?

sarenu1

TJ1979 said:

OMG mail sorting.  What a wreck.  Anyone have suggestions on this?

I think that's called my Dinning room table, kitchen counter, and china cabinet.

In other words I am terrible.

stoneycakes

I barely even step foot into our "office" because it's DH's territory. I still do all of the actual officey stuff for our house, though. I'm super unorganized about the paper aspect because I do most of it online. Should I take a picture of the random piles of mail in the house as a "before?" Ha ha!

redrockmama

stoneycakes said:

I barely even step foot into our "office" because it's DH's territory. I still do all of the actual officey stuff for our house, though. I'm super unorganized about the paper aspect because I do most of it online. Should I take a picture of the random piles of mail in the house as a "before?" Ha ha!

This last part is so us. We first it ends up on the table, then the record player, then the above mentioned shelf/counter. Eventually it makes it to either a filing cabinet or the recycle bin. 

km_md

I am an organizing nerd! I love it so much.

I just recently redid a bunch of stuff in my office because I got a bit unorganized after having DD.

When my mail comes in, I have a space downstairs where I put bills that need to be paid. Then junk mail gets recycled, and the odd time that we get something else, it gets filed away in the appropriate place.

I have a binder with page protectors in it that I use for all of our manuals.

I have a file system for all of our bills, tax documents, receipts, pet stuff, medical stuff, etc. Each one has a hanging folder (labeled of course) where I can throw in receipts or bill papers or whatever. Inside the hanging folder is a Manila folder that I staple my custom made spreadsheet type forms to. When a bill comes in, I write the date, what it was for, amount, year to date total and then a space to check off when it's paid. I have one of these for all of our major utilities/expenses and the mortgage. So I can look back and see exactly what I paid every month since we've lived here.

unaveragejane

@mapleme - This is what our den looks like since DH had to combine his man cave and home office. His is actually probably worse...like one sneeze away from crashing down! We'll totally be here for you in February when you have time to do this. I decided to label the chaos challenges by area for exactly this reason since we've all got crazy schedules at this time of year.

zaraceligon

The only tips the I can share to keep your mail organize is very simple. Most of the mail the I get I put it in a napkin holder on the desk. And every two weeks, when we do the payments we put the bills or any important document on a file cabinet, and for anything the need to be trash we shredded. And for last every two years we put all the files in a box and keep them in one of the office closets. Also I have a long plastic container with drawers on it, the goes under the desk, I put staples,tape, and all the office things in there. I also use the napkins holders to put laptop and tables.