Declutter It!

Creating A Current Box for Your High-Use Desk Zone

by Jennifer on April 11th, 2008

In the recent Office Zoning Issues post we looked at how to arrange your office supplies zone-wise to cut down on clutter. However some people in the comments mentioned stuff creeping up on them. Also, I mentioned that if you have certain tasks or a job that changes, the supplies and papers you may need can change week to week.

Because I write full-time my job does change on a weekly basis. One week I’ve got so and so projects, and the next week a new one. Also, my bills change each week and so does mail I need to deal with. To get around this I pay most of my bills online, but that doesn’t solve all my bills (some old school people still want checks) and it doesn’t help me with my revolving work schedule. Luckily, I found a solution that works pretty well.

First I bought one of these:

Above is a Mesh File Box - no lid, no wheels, which is key because you don’t want it moving around, and you don’t need to deal with a lid. In my experience lids create one extra step that stops people cold from using file storage. Everything you have will end up on the lid, not in the box.

You can get another type of storage box, but this one has some perks. First, it looks nice but was inexpensive, two, it has handles so carrying it is easy, and three, it’s square, not long, so it fits nicely into a little space near your desk. I just keep mine on the floor right next to my desk chair.

That brings me to step two: Find a suitable place for the box. It has to be right near your desk - in your high-use zone or it will never work. I can reach down and mess with my box and I’m barely moving.

Step three: What to put in the file box.

I call this box my, “current box” to remind me that it’s current, not high-use zone stuff because there will come a time soon where I won’t need it. Nothing else besides current stuff (with one one exception) is allowed in this box. You’ll need some hanging file folders and file tabs. What goes in your current box will depend on what is current in your world. Here’s what’s in my current box.

Current bills: Remember I pay bills at my desk, if you don’t, then there shouldn’t be bills in there.

Bills to keep: Bills I paid but for whatever reason, I want to keep them in my long-term file cabinet. Bills I pay that I don’t need anymore go directly into the shredder / recycle box that sits next to my desk.

Current important items to get done: This could be the health insurance renewal I need to sign and send in, my son’s dance class sign up form, or taxes.

Current mail to deal with: This is usually a mix of mail I think I may need to read, but I’m not sure, and letters or cards that I haven’t had time to read yet.

Current client projects: This is for any project that’s not ongoing, but that is relevant this week.

Cedar’s art: This one is weird, but when I’m working Cedar, my son, will run up and give me pictures he draws. I eventually hang them or put them in his picture box, but when I’m busy I need a place to store them quick that won’t create picture clutter. Thus, I made them a file.

MISC: If I see a piece of paper on my desk or my son’s dad shows up and hands me something and I have no clue what it is, it goes in MISC.

Current clips: If I have some magazine clips that I’d like to use for blog post ideas this is where they go.

Stuff to file: Anything besides bills that I decide I’d like to keep long-term, after it comes out of a current file I put in here. Receipts that I want to keep for example, may end up in here.

You can have as many current boxes as you need. For example, when I used to do more freelance writing vs. blogging, I had a file for each article or piece of copy. If you’re one of those people who like to go get things from another zone frequently, and bring them to your desk, I suggest you make both a “return to mid-use zone” file and a “return to low-use zone” file.

Step four: maintaining the current box:

Honestly, the current box requires very little maintenance IF you keep to a schedule. I clean mine out once every two weeks. Clean-up is a snap, because you’ve already been sorting as you go. I simply remove the bills to keep file, Cedar’s art file, the stuff to file folder, and the MISC file. I walk the bills and stuff file over to my large file cabinet and store it all away. I take care of Cedar’s art, and I sort the MISC file. It takes me about a half hour ever two weeks, maybe an hour if I’ve been extra bad about tossing stuff into the MISC file.

The biggest perk of a current box is that it keeps your stuff off of your desk where clutter can slow down your productivity, yet all of these items are still close enough for you to quickly get to. Plus since you’re using an open box, there’s no lid to open, it’s like you look down, and there’s your stuff. I’ve been using this system for over a year now, and the only thing my desk ever has on it is one pen and my paper schedule. Oh, and my coffee cup :)

The only hard part is getting used to putting things into the box instead of on your desk, but that habit will develop if you keep at it.

[Mesh File Box from Organize It]

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