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10 ways to declutter

They say that you should never go to sleep in a messy room, because the physical clutter will psychologically irritate the mind. The same goes for your desk, especially because you spend the same amount of time at your desk than you do in your bed.

Desk mess brings down one's energy levels as it creates stagnant chi (vital energy) and it also causes unnecessary stress over everything that you still need to do. It is only logical that if you clear your desk, you also clear and re-energise your mind.

Here are 10 ways to go about it:

  1. Invest in an inbox and an outbox, so that the only thing on your desk is what you are working on at that time. This will also help you to focus on the task at hand.
  2. File old papers away when you're finished with them and keep your files up-to-date.
  3. When papers or letters are dumped on your desk, take immediate action: deal with them, file them or throw them away.
  4. Keep a bin under your desk so that any junk mail or waste can be thrown away immediately.
  5. Your desk isn't your dining room table – if you want to eat something, get up and eat it in the staff lounge, because the last thing you need is crumbs, tomato sauce and spilt coffee all over your workspace.
  6. Keep a small tea candle burning on your desk to focus your mind.
  7. Put a few drops of energising and uplifting bergamot or pine oil in a burner or on the backs of your hands. Rosemary is good for concentration. (Pregnant women and epileptics should not use these oils.)
  8. Make a stationery drawer that contains all the materials you'll ever need for work and label/mark all your pens, pencils etc. so that you don't have the extra stress of "wandering" pens.
  9. A framed photo of loved ones is always a great way to calm one's mind.
  10. Take a break every hour. Get up and take a stroll around the office or stretch. This will replenish your concentration levels and will get the blood circulation going again.

(Health24, updated January 2011)

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