Have you ever sat down at your desk and became overwhelmed by the piles of paper needing to be filed or stacks of books to be read/donated? I sure have and it is a constant struggle for me to keep my office an area of optimum production. I remember an interview that I saw of Donald Trump. The reporter asked him, why is your office so messy? And The Donald said so eloquently, “it’s a sign of a genius at work”. While I would love to think of myself as a genius, the fact is when my office is messy and cluttered, I tend to be scatter-brained…a far cry from a genius.

So, here are a few steps to take in order to create a workspace that motivates production:

Step 1  Determine what motivates you.  Are you motivated by money?  Sales numbers?  Praise?  What about success quotes or inspirational words?  Are you motivated to save enough money to take your family on that amazing vacation you’ve been dreaming about or are you looking to purchase a luxury item?  Determine what motivates you first and foremost.  You can accomplish this by asking yourself a few questions.

    What do you like best about your job or business?

    What fills your day with the most joy?

    What are your goals and why are they your goals?

Step 2.  Make your workspace attractive to you.  For some this may mean bright colors and clean lines.  Other people prefer a more Zen-like feel and choose neutral colors and minimal embellishments.  What is your style?  Take it and bring it into your workspace.

Step 3.  Make your workspace personal.  If you’re inspired by Benjamin Franklin success quotes “Never leave that till tomorrow which you can do today.”  Then post them.  Hang pictures of your family or calming scenes.  If you’re saving for a vacation, perhaps a picture of that location posted in your workspace will help motivate you on those difficult days.  Motivated by money, post your current sales and your sales goals where you can see them at all times.

Step 4.  Reduce clutter.  Organize, organize, organize.  Clutter is a time stealer.  If you know where everything is, and everything has a place, then you’re headed in the right direction.  De-clutter your desktop by investing in a file cabinet or go paperless by investing in a scanner.  De-clutter your computer by organizing your work into files and storing them in larger files.  For example you could have a business folder and within that large folder you could have client folder or project folder.  Each sub folder would then have all of the documents and relevant files stored right there for easy access.

Step 5.  Add music, scents, and plants to make your workplace as pleasing as possible.  You don’t want it to be so relaxing that it puts you to sleep but you do want to feel inspired to work.  

Step 6.  Make sure your desk, desk chair, and computer keyboard are all adjusted to be comfortable for you.  An ergonomically designed workspace is a productive one.  You can’t get much done if your back is killing you from a poorly designed chair or you’re getting carpal tunnel from a misplaced keyboard.  Take the time to invest in comfortable office furniture – your business, body, and bottom line will reward you for the efforts.

Action step: Leave a comment. Thoughts?  I’d be honored to hear and have you share thoughts.  How? Simply leave or submit a comment below and personally commit take one step forward from where you are at today.