As a business, it’s incredibly easy to accumulate too much junk in your office that you don’t need. However, unless it’s seriously harming your ability to work, is it really worth the time and effort to fix those issues? Most of us would probably scoff at the idea of doing an office spring clean—and with reason too! If something is working, why change it? Is there really a need to empty out all those storage containers and shelves? They’re not doing anyone harm and they could contain some useful information.
Let’s take a look at some of the reasons why you should be decluttering your office and then you can decide for yourself if it’s worth your time or not.
Photo SourceFreeing up space
Office rental is expensive and eats up a considerable chunk of your business’s budget. Sadly, many businesses reserve far too much space for storage that just isn’t very useful. Think about the last time you accessed archived paper records. If you can’t remember and you have a storage room dedicated to storing useless bits of paper that aren’t even maintained, then you could free up that room and use it for something more useful. If you do access those documents now and then, you should consider a document scanning service that will help you sort, scan and digitise all of your records. They might even offer to help you shred unneeded documents after they’ve been converted to a digital format. It’s a fantastic way to free up space on shelves, reduce clutter in storage rooms and even free up extra much-needed space.
You might also have an area or room reserved for storing useless hardware or outdated equipment that doesn’t serve much use anymore. You could easily make a bit of extra money by recycling or selling old hardware that you don’t need. For instance, if you recently replaced a few dying hard drives and they no longer serve any use, have them destroyed and recycle the components. If you recently upgraded a couple of computers and your old ones are still in working condition, consider selling them on a website such as eBay or refurbish them to be used in other parts of your office—just don’t leave them lying around and taking up space!
Get organised
One of the negative side effects of a cluttered business is chaos. If you’ve ever searched around for five minutes just to try and find an important document or even a pencil, then your business is probably far too cluttered to be productive in. Think of all the time you should save if you knew where everything was and if you didn’t need to search high and low to find everyday essentials.
You can restore order to your business by removing clutter that isn’t needed. For instance, does your desk really need several keyboards and mice? Unless you have multiple computers on a single desk, you could probably free up lots of space and donate some of your peripherals to another employee, set up a new desk or even sell them for cash. That way your desk has more space for useful items such as important documents and letters that need to be checked, and you won’t be searching around everywhere to find basic items.
When you are trying to maintain a semblance of productivity, it can be a godsend to hire a commercial cleaning company to come in and declutter everything for you. But it’s important to remember that your employees have responsibility for their own desks. It can benefit to get help to in so you can start all over again. Taking the opportunity to declutter allows you the chance to spring clean the space and to start all over again, but be careful that they don’t clean too well! If you have a system in place, having a cleaner move things around so they could get under the desk can cause problems. This is why it’s so important to have a system, so your employees are in the habit of organisation.
If you get your employees to practice these kinds of good habits, then your business will look clean and you’ll easily be able to find the things you need. No more searching on shelves or asking for other members of staff to borrow their items or equipment, and no more delays due to a lack of organisation in your workplace. You can focus entirely on being productive in the workplace instead of cleaning up other people’s mess.
Create a comfortable working environment
Not everyone likes to work in a space that is cluttered and loud. For instance, designers love clean and minimalistic designs because it removes distractions and helps them focus on their task. A clear office without too many distractions is the key to improving your business’s productivity. Not only does a great looking office promote good vibes among your members of staff, it’s also easier to work in if you have great lighting and sound-proof your rooms so that you don’t get audio distractions from other offices or outside.
Even decorations such as plants and paintings have a soothing effect on employees. It reduces their overall stress and lifts their spirits when they need to get important work done. There are some very proud office owners around the world that focus a lot of their attention on creating a comfortable working environment, and the only way to do that is to declutter your workplace. A new soothing coat of paint, a couple of modern paintings or even just a few plants around the office will make a massive difference in mood.
Impressing recruits and clients
Your office might work for you and you might get a lot of work done, but having a messy office will usually turn off investors, clients and potential recruits because it’ll look like an absolute mess to them. If you’re serious about first impressions, then you have to clean up your office so that it doesn’t look like a dump when an influential person comes to meet you in your own workplace.
If they step into the door and see paper thrown around, members of staff in their pyjamas and pencils rolling across the floor, they will most likely turn around and forget they ever made contact with you. Of course, if you’re lucky it might have the opposite effect and they might admire how laid-back your office is, but most of the time you’re going to want to put on a professional appearance if you want to be taken seriously instead of being made a joke. First impressions count in the professional world, so do your best to declutter, clean up your workplace and teach your employees the same values so that when an investor comes, they’re more likely to give you money instead of telling their friends to avoid you.
