Great accessories to help organize your home office

Whether you have a dedicated home office or a multi-purpose space, being organized is a must. Here are several accessories that will help you keep a tidy workspace.

A cluttered office space can hinder your ability to focus and contributes to a huge loss in productivity. In fact, a survey conducted by Brother International Corporation concluded that a whopping 38 hours – nearly one whole work week! – is lost annually, per employee, on time spent looking for misplaced items in the office. Ouch.

So, throw away all those Post-It notes dating back to 2009 and toss out the empty gum wrappers that are housing the creepy crawlies around your desk to make room for some of these awesome accessories that will help you get, and stay, organized.

Stackable desk organization and wall pockets

Home office desk organization Organizing the home office

For small offices, one way to keep things organized and tidy is to work with the vertical space at hand. Rather than spreading all your paperwork and office supplies all over your desk, provide a home for all your things using stackable containers and wall pockets.

The Martha Stewart Stack+Fit line of products allow you to mix and match various boxes, drawers, and trays to create an organizational thing of beauty that’s perfect for all your papers and supplies.

Adhesive wall pockets, also by Martha Stewart, come in a variety of sizes and are an excellent way to utilize you office’s wall space to store all your receipts, invoices, and other documents. These handy pockets stick to nearly any household surface and can easily be removed without causing damage to the surface they were adhered to. Even better, the pockets are transparent, so knowing what you've stored where is a piece of cake.

Labeller

Desktop labeller Handheld labeller

Once you've spent so much time organizing your office, you’re going to want it to stay that way. To help ensure things are put back in their place and to help you find documents and supplies quicker and easier, it’s a good idea to use a labeller to, well, label things.

Creating durable labels for your shelves, file folders, or office supplies is easy with the Brother PT-2100 P-touch desktop labeller. The PT-2100 can be used on its own or be connected to your computer via a USB cable. When connected to your computer, you can use editing software to design customized labels using a variety of fonts, logos, clip art, and even barcodes. The PT-2100 features a 16-character/3-line display, has a built-in auto-cutter, and internal memory that will save up to nine label designs. The labeller uses durable “TZ” laminated tape. If you’re looking for a budget-friendly labeller with fewer bells and whistles, and one that creates non-laminated labels, you could consider the Brother P-touch PT-70 personal handheld labeller. The PT-70 features a PC-style keyboard, will print up to two lines, and uses non-laminated “M” tape.

Scanner

4-in-1 Printer Flatbed scanner Scanner and digital filing system Portable scanner

I consider myself to be a pretty organized person, but despite that, I still have that spot on my desk where loose papers like to congregate. And, because I work from home, my office has my personal life seep into it as well. Come the end of the week, I’ll often have a tower of bills, contracts, school newsletters, report cards, marketing material, and Post-It notes piled so high even the most expert of Jenga players would be impressed.

A great way to reduce paper clutter is to use a scanner to create digital copies of important documents (and yes, I should practise what I preach!). Not long ago, I wrote about the Epson WorkForce Pro WP-4530 all-in-one printer. The WP-4530 will scan in colour at a resolution of 1200 x 2400 dpi, and features an automatic two-sided ADF (Auto Document Feeder). If you prefer a dedicated scanner, you could consider buying the Canon CanoScan LiDE 210 Flatbed Scanner, the NeatDesk Desktop Scanner and Digital Filing System, or, for a more portable option, the Epson WorkForce DS-30 Sheet-Fed Scanner.

Shredder

Paper shredder

Of course, the whole reason you’re scanning your documents is to reduce clutter, so you’ll likely be throwing away the paper copies. To protect your privacy, as well as the privacy of your customers, clients, and employees, you should be using a shredder. The Staples 10-Sheet Cross-Cut Shredder will shred paper, credit cards, and staples and features:

  • Thermal overload protection (so the shredder won’t overheat)

  • A pull-out, bag-ready bin

  • Lockout key

  • Manual reverse

  • Auto start and stop

  • 5.5-gallon basket capacity (almost 21 litres)

  • 6.5 feet-per-minute shred speed (just under 2 meters)


Hey easyBlog readers, what home office organization tips and tricks do you have? Leave a comment to let us know!

Rhonda Callow is an award-winning freelance blogger and editor who has worked with numerous leading high-tech companies. She also helps companies with their public relations and social media management. Rhonda is a photography enthusiast and enjoys camping and hiking with her family during her free time. You can follow Rhonda on Twitter (@rhondacallow) or contact her at [email protected].

By Rhonda

January 28, 2013