In the interests of starting the year off on the right foot, we all spent some time clearing and cleaning our desks today in honour of this not so commonly known about holiday (possibly thought to have originated from New Year Resolutions). A competitive bunch, the offer of a prize for the cleanest desk competition definitely gave an incentive!

A few key benefits to a clean and tidy workspace: -

• Reduce clutter – a tidy space supports a tidy mind due to fewer distractions. It helps you focus, be more productive, improves workflow and generally makes you feel good about your workspace. This doesn’t just include physical clutter, computers count too – get organising those desktops and files into folders!
• Improve efficiency – when you know exactly where everything is, you don’t waste time looking for things. The average employee spends (wait for it) SIX weeks per year looking for things!!!
• Covid conscious – not only Covid, but regular cleaning of workspaces reduces the risk of any nasty bugs and bacteria. There are on average 16 million microbes on a typical office keyboard (eugh). It’s also much safer from a fire safety and work related injury perspective. Statistics show that slips, trips and falls are the most common cause of work related injury in the UK, and physical clutter is a serious fire hazard – spending 5 minutes at the end of each day ensuring your workspace is clean and clear will not only help keep you safe, but your colleagues too.

Interesting fact

• Did you know that Charles Darwin revolutionised the office chair by adding wheels to help him get to his specimens quicker whilst in his study?