Well, research suggests it can indicate your personality and how you might work.
A tidy office desk is often seen as a sign of a well-organised person, while the saying “cluttered desk, cluttered mind” is at the opposite end of the spectrum.
Considering the average office worker spends five hours and 41 minutes sitting at a desk each day, you could be forgiven for thinking it’s a personal space and entirely up to you how it looks. While this is true to a degree, does it bother you that 50% of office workers are “appalled” at the state of a colleague’s desk, as they find its untidy state distracting?
Studies show a messy office desk can also make you less productive, as a lot of time is spent looking for things that have been misplaced.
1. Messy desk
We’ve all sat next to someone who’s desk is very messy, to the point where you wonder how they find anything – or perhaps you’re that person? If anything’s missing such as the stapler, sales reports or the phone, there’s a good chance it’s buried under the pile of clutter.
On the positive side, the clutterer tends to be creative and extrovert, with a welcoming manner that makes them likeable. However, the negatives include reduced productivity, as they spend an average of four hours and 20 minutes each week searching for things they’ve lost.
A significant 57% of office workers have judged a colleague by how their desk looks, with an untidy desk having negative connotations. A massive 73% of employers believe an employee with a cluttered desk is more likely to be disorganised. However, most messy people don’t care what other people think, as only 12% of them worry about colleagues’ opinions of their desk.
2. Tidy desk
Around 70% of office workers think their own desk is tidy, according to a poll by office supplies brand Brother. Two-fifths of tidy people said a messy desk would have a negative impact on their performance. Almost half said working in a cluttered office would make them feel less like going into work each morning, with 30% feeling it increased stress.
Someone with a tidy, minimalist type of desk is conscientious, disciplined, hard working and reliable. They thrive on planning and structure, believing less clutter equates to fewer distractions. However, very tidy people are often a little cautious and reluctant to try out new ideas.
According to studies, an incredibly tidy desk, with nothing to personalise it, makes it seem like they aren’t staying.
3. Technical desk
We all know someone who’s obsessed with the latest technology, to the point where they have it spread out all over their desk. Some desks look like electronics stores, with a PC, laptop, tablet, mobile phones, Wi-Fi speakers, headset, printer and anything else they can squeeze on. This kind of desk might look cluttered, but it’s useful clutter.
The person is usually creative, friendly, compulsive, curious, willing to experiment with new ideas and take on new challenges. However, they tend to do things in their own way, so although they have some innovative ideas, they may take longer to bring them to life.
4. Personalised desk
Some employees like to bring a little bit of home to their office desk, such as their favourite mug, plant, family photo and small trinkets. Their desk eventually becomes a scaled-down version of a home office, but is this a bad thing?
A person with a personalised desk is often extroverted, creative and open to new ideas. On the other hand, colleagues may wonder why someone needs to be surrounded by trinkets, while they see enough photos of other people’s children on Facebook. It can also seem unprofessional if you meet business contacts there.
From a management point of view, taking personal items into work can make an employee seem settled in their job, so they won’t be looking to leave.
Can someone change the way they set up their desk?
If setting up your desk in a certain way impacts how you perform, can you change your personal space to change your working practices for the better? Psychologists say yes, you can, but within limits. The most obvious example is when a person with a messy desk tidies it and organises paperwork more efficiently.
A worker with a tidy desk is 52% more productive and 48% happier, according to research, so by making this simple change, you could have a more positive experience at work.
Should tidiness be company policy?
Should the office manager intervene if someone’s desk is so messy that other people are complaining? Making a tidy desk company policy could be one step too far, according to a report published by PA Life.
Some companies have a clause in the policy booklet banning cluttered desks. However, some managers believe this can have a negative impact on morale. Working at a desk for up to nine hours a day in a strictly controlled environment can remove the sense of familiarity and comfort that having personal items brings.
A happy medium could be asking employees to keep their desk as tidy as possible, while making it a rule NEVER to leave confidential company documents in view. Psychologists believe the management of an office shouldn’t dictate whether an individual can have a small family photo or other personal items on their desk.
The rules in an office are important when it comes to health and safety, so if an employee is leaving half-eaten sandwiches or dirty coffee cups on their desk and these are becoming a health hazard, it could be time to quietly intervene.
Some businesspeople feel the modern office, such as serviced office space, can accommodate all styles of working to keep everyone happy. They no longer need to look like traditional offices. Employees feel much happier when the workspace is divided up in an interesting way that can accommodate different ways of working.
Renting space at our serviced office in London means enjoying the benefits of a flexible workspace that provides a great platform to win clients. We also have an in-house cleaning team who will make sure there’s never a build-up of unhygienic food waste or other clutter in bins.
Recycling and going green is part of the fabric of BE Offices. Every client has the opportunity to declutter and ensure their waste, including paper and food, is being disposed of in an eco-friendly manner through our zero waste to landfill policy.
Image credits:
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