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Reset your Home Office with These Simple Steps

MONEY & BUSINESS

Starting a new month in your home office can be daunting when you still have pieces of last month hanging out in there with you.

I love a new month.  It’s like a hitting reset on a new year every time you turn the calendar.  This feeling doesn’t hit the same if your office is cluttered.

Your environment is a reflection of how you feel.  So, if your space is cluttered, chances are your mind and spirit will be too.

My home office is in our living room.  I have taken over most of the space, but the family still seems to end up in there from time to time.  (Old habits are hard to break.) Refreshing my office after they have been there is so important to me.

Luckily, I have a few rituals I pull together to make every month feel new and welcomed.

Everyone’s business is different, so you may not be able to do everything I do.  Feel free to take this advice and form it into your own Home Office Reset.

BRAIN DUMP

Getting started on an office reset begins with one simple thing: a brain dump.

I evaluate what needs to be changed or fixed in the environment.  I take note of all of this in my Brain Book.  

I know I am not going to spend all day tidying up, and sometimes I get dramatic and start cleaning carpets and moving furniture.  I have to hold myself to only keep to these essential tasks before I take on big projects like that.

Home Office Reset

When everything is out of your head, you can get a better idea of what needs attention and how long it will take you.

Next, jot down a key so you can batch your to-do list tasks together instead of a random order.

Home Office Brain Dump

Keep it simple.  Use whatever symbols will require the least amount of thinking.  

RESET ACTION

Now decide what order you will do to get the best result.  I start with tasks, then calls, and admin. I leave the ordering and social media jobs for last.  If I did those things first, I would end up in a rabbit hole of lost time.

If some of the items on your Brain Dump look more like action items you don’t want to do on your reset day, add them to your Planning Brain Dump.  Doing this will still get the item to a place you will take action without disturbing your reset time.

Paper Clutter

As hard as I try, I can never seem to tame the paper mountain beast.  I will always end up with a stack of papers that didn’t get put where they belong.  They then get added to a pile of documents that were previously ignored, and the cycle continues. 

When that happens, I make it a point to attack the clutter before it spills over into the rest of my office and month.

I gather everything together and start making stacks and tossing things I don’t need.  From the stacks, I move them into folders or file them where they belong.

Keeping an “in-progress” folder has helped me keep up with important things.  Bills, appointment slips, coupons, and random stuff can pile up in different areas and make significant clutter. 

The “in-progress” folder is checked every day as part of my morning system when I come into my office. This folder keeps me from missing important deadlines.

This part may end up being time-consuming for you, but if you keep up with it daily, you will be able to skip this part of the home office rest.

APPOINTMENTS & UPCOMING EVENTS

No matter what your business model looks like, you will always have appointments, phone calls, and events you need to attend.  

Now that you have your paper clutter in order, grab your calendar and plot these things out:

  • Deadlines
  • Bills Due
  • Appointments
  • Events

I love using paper, but I also put these important things into my Google Calendar.  Notifications always get my attention, so I don’t miss anything.  Scheduling in a digital calendar is also helpful for reminders of things that recur monthly and yearly.

The B Words

I have met few people who get joy out of reviewing their budgets, but this is a significant thing to do monthly in your home office, regardless if you have a business or are in charge of personal spending.

Make this a part of your monthly office reset.  You will train yourself to hold yourself accountable, knowing that you will have to face what you’ve spent every month.

The other “B” word you probably won’t like is bookkeeping.  If you outsource your books, there will still be things you need to meet and get to and from the bookkeeper.

For the rest of us who are solely responsible for our books, this part is so important.  I encourage you to add “bookkeeping” to your daily office system checklist.  It is hard to start doing it, but once you get those first few weeks done consistently, you have formed a habit that is hard to shake.

{Side note: I love using QuickBooks. You don’t have to be a certified bookkeeper to be your own CFO.}

If daily bookkeeping isn’t going to work for you, at least pick a day of the week that you will sit down to get your books together every week.

For example, you could do a “Finance Friday” or “Money Monday” if you are looking for a fun, catchy name day.

It doesn’t matter how you do it; just get your money and books in your control.

Make it Your OFFICE Reset

I love starting the month out with a whole day of getting my office organized and ready for the days ahead.

We are all different, and you may not have the same opportunity to take a whole day to focus on cleaning up your home office.

That’s okay!

Find the system that works for you and prepares you to take on the month and your business.

KEEP READING ABOUT PLANNING…