Give Your Office A Makeover Just By Getting Rid Of Clutter

Every homeowner knows that clutter accumulates in home offices and study rooms. As time flies by, you aren't able to notice the amount of paper piling up in these rooms because you're too busy working on current documents.

Don't worry, there's an easy way to save these spaces—clean them up! Transform these rooms into spic-and-span parts of the home and prevent these spaces from looking like a bodega, or worse, becoming a potential fire hazard with these tips:

1. Purge it. 

Get rid of any unimportant, printed out correspondence or material you haven't touched in the last six months. If you have old printouts of files, encode them or scan them into PDF files and have them burned into CDs. This saves space and you won't waste any future paper. 

2. Store it. 

Standard, store-bought computer desks work best for storing your PC. Keep the CPU under your desk to free up the surface for additional workspace. Put the printer and other accessories on an overhead shelf or nearby side table. Provide a shelf near the printer for clean sheets of paper and nothing else.

3. Make do with what you have.

You can convert an unused corner of your bedroom or living room into an office by separating the space with waist-high bookcases. This creates a little nook where you can keep all work-related items. Make sure that you keep any paper materials in this spot to keep it from making a mess in different parts of your home. 

4. Keep track. 

Now that you have decluttered all of the unnecessary stuff, don't let yourself start accumulating papers again. Have a filing folder on your desk for important documents, bills and miscellaneous mail—anything that doesn't get opened or responded to in the next two weeks must be discarded. 

A part of the material for this article is orginally from the January-February 2006 issue of Real Living Magazine. Download your digital copy of Real Living on the Real Living App. Log on to summitnewsstand.com.ph/real-living for more details.