Home Office Organization

It seems rudimentary to realize that home office organization is important to a successful household and home business, however creating and maintaining an organized home office is more difficult, and can be time consuming without the right tricks and tools. It's really a great “life hack,” to use modern terminology, and one of the most important home office ideas. Some great home office organization tips follow:

An Ergonomic Workspace

Your workspace doesn’t need to be large, but it does need to be a comfortable, quiet place to sit for long periods of time. It should actually be a relaxing place to go to work!

Read my detailed ergonomics recommendations

Another movement that is gaining popularity is the use of the ancient Chinese art of Feng Shui to organize and place objects within your office. If you're setting up your office for the first time, read about the different zones of your office and how to reduce mental blockages to becoming efficient. The feng shui office.

Family Rules

Another popular home office idea is to have set family rules.

Set an established work schedule - Set up a time when the whole family knows you're working, that they are not to bother you. Just make sure that you are actually working during this time to establish their trust!
If possible, close the door - Make sure the whole family knows that if the door is closed, they aren't to bother you. Appoint someone else to be the go to person for "emergencies."
Get a separate line - If you are running a business from your home, invest in a second phone line. This will keep the ringing of the family phone from disturbing your concentration.
Bring in your snacks and water before you start - Reduce those trips to the refrigerator. Eating *healthy* snacks and drinking *water* while you work can increase your productivity. Have enough on hand so you don't make a frequent bee-line to the kitchen.

Are you a busy mom with a hectic schedule? Check out this site for more great ideas!

Organizing Paper Files

So much paper comes into our lives! If you have a computer at home (and I bet you do, since you're reading this!), I recommend you look into a paperless filing system, which will help you to manage paper files and process paper quickly. I guarantee that after managing a household or business through your home office you will much rather look through an electronic file cabinet, enhancing your paper files, rather than the paper clutter that is bound to accumulate!

Here's a book I can really recommend: Finally Organized, Finally Free for the Office is an amazing collection of 1,875 organizing tips, ideas and techniques to help you organize your office, your files, your schedule, the time you spend in meetings, your business travel, your computer files and your email. You'll find clutter-control tips for your desk and time management systems to help you be more productive, without the need to work harder. You'll discover super ways to organize all of your paper and your projects. Catch up with your filing and your business reading once and for all. Ideas and systems to keep you motivated, and so much more! For more information, click here.

Here are even more ideas for reducing your paper clutter!

If you're adamant in staying old-school, and continuing a large paper filing system, here's my suggestion for a starting point for organizing paper files for your home office organization!

Organizing Computer Files

Luckily, electronic files are stored much more easily and take up much less physical space! They can also be stored in a hierarchy that is searchable, and makes sense to you. It should also make sense to others, too, in case they need to take over for you, or you want to sell your business some day! How should I structure my computer files?

You need to know how to maintain electronic files and back them up securely, and off-site! Many people back up their files to a secondary hard drive, or CD ROM and think they are safe. Ask yourself - what if that hard drive crashes? What if you house burns down? All of your important records and backups are gone too! Here's, a safe, effective and cheap backup system to aid in your home office organization!

Want more great home office ideas directly to your inbox? Sign up for my FREE E-Zine, HOME OFFICE CEO. Every month, I scour the web and present you with the best ideas, tips, tricks and products to make your home office an efficient, enjoyable place to work!