5 Top Tips To Be More Organised At Work

Some people think that being organised is down to an individual’s own personality and preference. Or even often something you either are or you’re not. But I believe that this is a habit that can be learnt. Over the years, I’ve picked up some great tips to be more organised at work, so am sharing them with you here.

Prepare The Night Before

Now I’m not expecting anyone to do work the night before. But preparing things like your outfit, bag and even route can help make you more organised. Doing this preparation the night before, is crucial if you are attending an important meeting or even a job interview. I always end up losing so much time in the morning debating what to wear and even trying on various outfits! My workaround is to check the weather the night before and plan my outfit as well as pack my bag. Leading me nicely to my next point.

Invest In A Good Great Bag

The perfect bag can make an outfit! But it’s worth investing in quality workwear bags that will help you to both look professional and be useful in carrying things like your notebook or tablet. This can be especially helpful when you are always on the go running to and from meetings.

The aesthetic of it is also key as it helps to present you as professional (not to mention organised) to clients, potential employers and prospect clients. It’s never a good look turning up to a client meeting with a messy backpack for example. For women, there is nothing more polished and stylish than a leather handbag.

I personally love the selection from Radley! Their styles are both contemporary and classic and offer a range of designs to suit any style. I’d recommend something like a medium-sized structured handbag, preferably in a classic black leather to complete any office outfit.

Shorten Your To-Do List

It’s no secret that to-do lists can help you to prioritise as well as be more organised in general. However, most people make the mistake of making their to-do lists far too long! You only have a set amount of time in any working day, so make sure you have only listed out the tasks you can get done in that day.

If you still have several things to cross of your list at the end of the day, you may feel quite unaccomplished. For myself, I stick to a maximum of 5 to-do’s in the day. I also organise them by required time, unless something is a key priority that day. I will then aim to start the longer tasks first, and then move onto a quicker less tedious task in case I get bored or need a change of pace.

Keep Your Desk And Surrounding Space Clear

As the saying goes… “tidy desk, tidy mind”. This is one I’m guilty of letting slip from time to time. But I find that having a clear out of your work space really helps to keep you focused as well as organised. With less clutter on my desk, I find I’m less distracted. I often find myself flicking through post-its or organising paperwork. Most printed documents are also available digitally, so there’s really no need to keep print outs – RECYCLE!

Be Clear And Concise And Follow-up On Meetings

One of the easiest ways to lose momentum on a project after a series of meetings, is to not be clear on action points and who is responsible for what. The best way to ensure things don’t get lost in translation, is to follow-up with a concise summary after a meeting has taken place. It’s also best to include a list of action points.

Be organised and get ahead of the project by following up with the attendees shortly after the meeting has taken place. Provide a clear and concise summary of what was discussed, and list out what the next steps are. Not providing this, often leads to miscommunication and prevents projects from moving forward.

Have you got any tips of your own to share on how to be more organised at work?