3 Easy (And Pretty!) Ways To Help You Get Organized At Work
I'm so excited to welcome Lauren Tanzer to my blog! Besides having the same first name as me, Lauren is truly a beautiful personality. Today, Lauren shares 3 tips to help you stay organized at work! Enjoy!
No matter what industry you work in, we can all agree on one thing, there's an enormous amount of information that we collect, sort through, and try to process on a daily basis. Whether it's return on your financial investments for clients or trying to sift through thousands of images and make your favorite selects (like me!), there's just a lot of 'stuff' and we oftentimes find ourselves overwhelmed. The trick to workplace sanity? Getting organized!
My company, Summerjax, produces photo shoots for major brands such as Roxy, Hollister and VANS. Because these companies are always looking for the best content no matter what, my job takes me and my staff to some pretty amazing locations all over the world. Being on the road so much means that it's more important than ever to keep my work neat and orderly. I've picked up some pretty great organizational habits along the way.
If you've been reading An Organized Life for awhile now, the life-changing magic (I may have "borrowed" that phrase from Marie Kondo, but it's still applicable here) that is organization is probably not new to you. But let's say you've somehow lost track of your work space or feel like you're in a rut with your daily work routine. Here are some helpful tips on quickly getting organized - fast. Added bonus: you can make them super pretty, giving you that extra boost of inspiration.
1. Post-It, See It, Do It
Some people in my organization prefer to keep track of important dates, projects, and notes by creating online calendars and filing systems and more power to them! My partner, Wim, and I, however, prefer it the old "pen-to-paper" way. I need to be surrounded by the plan that I'm working on. It helps me focus and have a tangible connection with the work that I'm doing. This may feel outdated to some, but I write ideas, to-do lists, and goals down with a big marker on Post-It Notes and post them all around me. Keeping my tasks in my visual field ensures that I don't miss anything or accidentally forget about an upcoming deadline. If you find yourself always putting your tasks in your virtual planner but never following through, it may be that you're victim to simply just not remembering to open the application that is meant to keep you organized. Or, if you did manage to get it open, it can easily become hidden behind Chrome browsers, Word documents, Excel sheets, and of course emails. The Post-It Note method ensures nothing gets 'lost' on my busy screen.
2. Take A Cue From Elementary School
We've all been there... Running into a meeting, late, and you realized that the gorgeous, $18 Anthropologie journal that you purchased specifically to up your work style game is still sitting on your desk. Instead, you borrow a torn sheet of college ruled paper from your colleague and begin jotting down notes. Or maybe you remembered said journal and have been handed an important print out that you need to write specific notes on during your meeting. Either way, we all end up with a lot of loose paper and it's easy for those important documents to get lost in the shuffle on your desk. One of the most brilliant organization hacks I've ever done is buying a (cute) 3 ring binder and a hole punch. This way, I can easily file and keep all those loose papers that I acquire throughout the day and tote them with me when needed. If binders, tabs, and hole punches sounds too elementary for you (pun intended), trust me, it's not. This one trick has made me the VIP of always knowing exactly where that note about the client's obscure feedback on our production plan is.
3. Go Green
If you want to use recycled paper and set up a compost station at your desk, that's great! But I'm talking about adding some greenery into your space. It can be as simple as a small, sweet, succulent or as robust as an herb garden you can use to add flavor to your lunches. On first blush, adding plants to your workspace doesn't feel like a traditional 'organization' tip; but there's something about living greenery that inspires you to keep everything clean, pretty, and by default, organized.
Got some good work-space organization tips of your own? Share them with us in the comments below!
Lauren leads a team that has produced photo shoots and video content for iconic lifestyle brands all over the world. As founder of Southern California-based Summerjax since 2012, her work has resulted in numerous achievements for brands including Jose Cuervo, ASICS, Hollister, Roxy, Quiksilver, Reef, Vans, RVCA, OluKai, SAXX and Honest Company. She works with a carefully cultivated network of industry professionals from all across the globe to create productions that give audiences virtual experiences they won’t forget. Summerjax’s projects include Roxy’s ongoing global campaign shoots in Ireland, Japan, Taiwan, Mexico, Alaska, Jackson Hole, LA and Hawaii; an extremely successful re-branding initiative for Hollister that has brought a fashion-forward image to their digital and in-store marketing; and Jose Cuervo’s 2015-16 “Tradicional” campaign which has been a key part of their arrival in the surf lifestyle space. Lauren is an experienced traveler with shoot locations and connections all over the world but she also knows how to find the ideal setting in her own So-Cal backyard.
