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Time Management
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sometimes function efficiently: their keen motor skills enable
them to remember where something was flung.
Conversely, in all five categories are people who misplace
things all the time. No matter which type you are, to successful-
ly navigate your desktops, you must follow a style that:
• Echoes your thought processes
• Aids the nature of your job
• Enables you to find something swiftly and without undue
stress
If your style meets these three criteria, then keep your cur-
rent approach. If not, it’s time to consider a different way of
organizing your space.

What Can You Do?
There are simpler and surprisingly obvious things that work for
virtually every desk management style. Try some of these:

• Reserve the surface of your desk only for active projects
and the supplies you use most.
• Small backup supplies (e.g., paperclips, correction fluid,
etc.) belong in a top drawer. Only a few of each essential
supply item go on the desk surface. For instance, you
don’t need a can full of pens on your desk: keep two or
three there and put the rest into the drawer.
• Place your phone on the side opposite your writing hand.
That way, you can take notes without the cord crossing in
front of you (or get a cordless phone).
• Establish a tickler file in a bottom desk drawer. A tickler
file is one in which a separate file folder represents each
day of the next month. Behind that are 11 folders, for the
months that follow. Just drop things in their approximate
date/folders; each morning look in that day’s slot, where
you’ll find items that need to “tickle” your memory.
• Make the bottom drawer a filing system for your most
important documents.
• Verify that your desk is well lighted and that your chair is
comfortable.