So far I have 4 serious entrants to the competition and other “should I, shouldn’t I?” emails.

This is just a courtesy reminder that the disorganised office contest closes at 12PM EST today.

Get your entries in!

Okay, here’s the deal
I’m looking for someone who could use my 7 easy steps to organise your office MP3 and ebook pack.

I will donate a copy to someone free of charge and in exchange, you will guest blog (one post a week for about 4 – 6 weeks, depends how quickly you work through it) as you work through the system and organise your office.

The system covers organising your actual office space, desk, email, computer, etc. so you should have a more organised office than you had when you started

It doesn’t matter if one or two of your areas are already reasonably under control because even REALLY organised people have used just one or two tips and seen BIG results

This is how you enter

Send me an email to marcia AT organiseyourbusiness.com or leave a comment telling me

Entries close at midnight EST tonight (24 Dec).

I’ll let the winner know sometime over the weekend and everybody else will get another gift for being brave enough to step up

Remember this post from last year where I showed you my planner?

(Incidentally, I need to put a “most popular posts” thing on my blog because that post gets a huge amount of traffic)

Anyway, I started a series of blog posts on the other blog called choose the perfect planner. Read this one and keep checking back. I’ve planned out about 5 already.

Here is part 1 – paper or electronic?

So have you bought yours yet?

I’ve always said that if you make something too complicated, it just won’t work, no matter how well-intentioned you are.

That’s why it’s so important to make your systems easy, especially if you live with other people and you want them to live by your organising “rules”.

That’s true for designing a good flow for laundry in the home and also for recycling paper in the office.

And so this was born:

I used to have one wastepaper basket but found we were less inclined to separate the paper when we cleared the trash.

Who wants to fish around amongst apple cores and other bits of fruit? Certainly not me.

This works beautifully for us.

First of all, I don’t generate that much paper to start with but what I do throw away, goes straight into the paper bin. It’s much easier now to take the one basket and dump it as is into the paper recycling bag.

Do you recycle paper? If yes, do you use those fancy partitioned recycling bins, or how do you make it easy for your household?

As promised, here are some pictures of my desk at work. Looking at the pictures it actually looks a lot more cluttered than it feels…

Anyway, some things I want to point out to you:

1. the wall of inspiration on the right under my name (pictures of my hubby, inspirational quotes, scriptures from the Bible, pictures of friends and some SARK cards – my favourite is “you are a delicious, succulent human bean”, which fits into my Big, Juicy goals theme)
2. my glass of water
3. my office control journal (in that vertical organiser)
4. minimal paper – only have 3 files and I’m actually cheating because one of them contains my performance appraisals, certificates, etc.

Now let’s look at my desk head-on:

• computer with picture of Wicklow, Ireland as a screensaver
• in the top left corner, I have my “only four things to do with paper and email” from Help! I need more time
• radio and mirror (essentials!)
• to the left of the computer, my “things to do today” papers
• right in front of the keyboard, my master to-do list of all my projects and where they’re all at, on top of the notebook where I write my 6 (or less) Eat the Frog items every day, and other assorted notes

For the most part, the desk works for me (although that vertical organiser is taking up too much space – I think I’ll “release” it) because it’s empty of stuff while still being inspiring to me. I can’t work in a cold work space so I like to be surrounded by things that are “me”.

If you have any questions about some things in the pics or how I do certain things, put them in the comments so everyone else can also benefit when I answer them. Thanks.

Now for the fun part, show me your desk (please link to a post with a pic of your desk, not to your entire blog)

• Do you find yourself wasting time looking for files on your computer?
• Do you get frustrated because you just don’t know where to start?
• Do you know when and how often to do a back up?
• Has your computer ever crashed and you lost everything?
• Do you know how to organise and contain all those free things you keep downloading off the internet?
• Do you know how to name and store files so they’re easy to find?

Everything you EVER wanted to know about organising your computer is now ready for you.

On this 75-minute MP3, you’ll learn:

• Where to start organising your computer
• My DREAM method of organising your computer
• How to keep control of all the audios, PDFs and ebooks you get for free off the internet and how NOT to let it clutter up your hard drive
• Exactly how to label and store your documents and files so you can find them
• How to organise your contacts and all those business cards
• How to cut your computer time in half
• How to organise tasks and projects
• How and when to do a proper, thorough back up of your files and how to know when to do it so you don’t lose your work
• And much, much more

You’ll receive:

1. Recording of the live call as an MP3 audio download
2. Comprehensive handout

Only two days left…

I run Virtual Organising Seminars for people all over the world. Isn’t the internet amazing?! During our time together, we organise your desk, get your paper and emails organised and set up a planning and priority system for you.

During the last one, I decluttered paper from about 6 file binders that are now totally empty. I’ll repurpose the other files…

but this one is going. For me, filing is the same like carrying handbags – the bigger the file, the more paper you collect. So out it goes. Together with a few odds and ends found around my office space. Which just goes to show, there’s always room for improvement, even in an organised office

Over this month, what have you decluttered from your office? How much paper has gone?

P.S. The next VOS happens on Tuesday 16 Sept at 12PM EST. Are you joining me?

Tackled my desk and some files. I like a paperless environment because we only ever look at about 20% of papers ever again.

Deleted things off my master to-do list, made new lists, etc.

What did you declutter today?