Office Etiquette Aside: How Messy is your work area?

[A_B]

I have an office in a secluded part of my building and as such I don't get a lot of foot traffic. However, I got a new boss who spends part of his time in Lexington as opposed to my old boss who was based in Oklahoma. As such, I've tried to keep my office a bit nicer as this boss is a drop by kind of guy. But overall I'd say my office is still on the messy side.

On my desk(s) now (excluding normal computer/keyboard/monitor):

- Notebook and assorted papers for projects I'm working on
- various pens/highlighters
- Some qdoba coupons
- water bottle
- cup of water
- empty box for some equipment
- External CD drive
- scissors, tape dispenser
- empty mug
- three books in various stages of reading
- tape measure

So, rate your office/cube/workspace cleanliness from 1-10, where one is "August 7th, 1945 Hiroshima" and 10 is Pre-Surgery Operating Room.

[Nonlinear FC]

Have you seen my stapler?

[Nonlinear FC]

Thing is, this is such a sliding scale based on individual history/opinion.

For me, this is the cleanest office I've ever had. It's also the largest AND it's the one where I'm most likely to have not just co-workers but citizens looking in. (I'm on the ground floor in a pretty much all glass facade type deal.)

- Plant
- Tape dispenser
- STAPLER
- silver bowl with rocks and shells from beach trips
- Big mug that keeps my pens and highlighters and stuff
- 3 different paper piles.
- wooden mini-crate looking thing that I keep my business cards in
- 3 silver little arty figures in the shape of sail boat, bear and turtle
- little tin of blue diamond almonds - salt'n vinegar (taste like ass, going to throw them out)

[Sabo]

I try to keep my work desk uncluttered because it helps me maintain focus on my tasks.

Excluding computer equipment, my desk currently holds:

- iPad and stand
- Cell phone
- Eyeglass cleaner
- Two USB thumb drives
- Two small electronics cases
- One small quartz countertop sample

[Ryan]

I feel like I'm about a 4 on my own scale of how neat I like things to be l but closer to an 8 or 9 in the specific world of office desks

[mister d]

I'm a minimalist so I assume my baseline is like a 7 and the rest depends on the day and whether I left a notebook out. Water bottle, coffee bottle if its early, headphones, sometimes notebook, cup of pens, hand sanitizer and an iPhone cable. A couple pics of kids and drawings on the walls.

[brian]

Probably a four. But I work from home, so...caveat. I'd still like it to be cleaner I suppose.

Right now there's:

-- Various casino coupons
-- Stack of (unread) magazines about 10 inches high.
-- Three (unread) book
-- Pill bottles.
-- Portable weed vape.
-- Various phone/Fitbit chargers
-- Notebooks.
-- Stack of W-2G that need filing.

[DaveInSeattle]

Comparatively tidy...

Currently:
-a few pens, including a highlighter and a whiteboard market
-hydroflask water bottle
-2 coffee mugs
-nail clippers
-2 lip balms
-charging cables for my iphone, and my bike lights
-dental floss

I see some colleagues who I'm surprised can even find their desks....

[brian]

I forgot the most bizarre thing on my desk because it's in a bag and tucked into a corner:

I have a diamond ring that I used to propose to my college girlfriend in 1998 that was returned after we broke off the engagement. I've had this fucking ring kicking around for almost 20 years and still have no idea what I'm going to do with it.

[mister d]

-nail clippers

Duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuude ...

[Nonlinear FC]

I have nail clippers, disposable tooth brushes, cotton swabs, deodorant... Pretty much a full dopp kit. IN my desk, not on it. I have to be prepared to be here 24/7 at a moments notice.

[A_B]

I needed a damn razor yesterday. I missed a big swath on my neck somehow

[Pruitt]

Work at home, and the desk really only gets messy when my wife uses the computer.

When I am working on a project, I tend to spread papers out all over the place. But at the end of the day, I always tidy it up - I need to have things stacked up and the centre of the desk has to be clear or I get a bit discombobulated.

And the dog sleeps on the love seat near by, she's a real slob.

[BSF21]

Work at home, and the desk really only gets messy when my wife uses the computer.

When I am working on a project, I tend to spread papers out all over the place. But at the end of the day, I always tidy it up - I need to have things stacked up and the centre of the desk has to be clear or I get a bit discombobulated.

And the dog sleeps on the love seat near by, she's a real slob.

Either pay the dog tax or don't post.

[mister d]

I have nail clippers, disposable tooth brushes, cotton swabs, deodorant... Pretty much a full dopp kit. IN my desk, not on it. I have to be prepared to be here 24/7 at a moments notice.

Same. And floss is the biggie you missed. But if I do rip a nail and need the clippers, I go to the bathroom. ON the desk implies something totally different and horrific.

[Pruitt]

Work at home, and the desk really only gets messy when my wife uses the computer.

When I am working on a project, I tend to spread papers out all over the place. But at the end of the day, I always tidy it up - I need to have things stacked up and the centre of the desk has to be clear or I get a bit discombobulated.

And the dog sleeps on the love seat near by, she's a real slob.

Either pay the dog tax or don't post.

I'll bite - what's a "dog tax?"

[A_B]

Work at home, and the desk really only gets messy when my wife uses the computer.

When I am working on a project, I tend to spread papers out all over the place. But at the end of the day, I always tidy it up - I need to have things stacked up and the centre of the desk has to be clear or I get a bit discombobulated.

And the dog sleeps on the love seat near by, she's a real slob.

Either pay the dog tax or don't post.

I'll bite - what's a "dog tax?"

He wants to see a picture of your bitch lying on the couch.

[Nonlinear FC]

I have nail clippers, disposable tooth brushes, cotton swabs, deodorant... Pretty much a full dopp kit. IN my desk, not on it. I have to be prepared to be here 24/7 at a moments notice.

Same. And floss is the biggie you missed. But if I do rip a nail and need the clippers, I go to the bathroom. ON the desk implies something totally different and horrific.

I have a bag of those flosser things. Game changer for me. Makes flossing so much easier.

[DSafetyGuy]

Working from home on a leveled drafting table. Table is currently a 4, but I emptied out everything from my backpack after getting back from my work trip yesterday. If I throw away about six pieces of paper and tidy up a couple other things, I'm probably back to my usual 8.

[Pruitt]

Here's Izzy.

She's a bit of a contortionist. Technically, the love seat is my office's guest area...

[howard]

So, rate your office/cube/workspace cleanliness from 1-10, where one is "August 7th, 1945 Hiroshima" and 10 is Pre-Surgery Operating Room.

Office office, a ten. Since it is, um, a pre-surgery operating room. Home office, a solid 1. After David Lynch treatment.

[sancarlos]

At my old job, my boss was a fastidious neatnik. His boss was a fastidious neatnik. I wasn't horrible (call it a 5), but when I got busy I did tend to leave papers around cluttering things. So, it was funny if either of them was in my office. The boss's boss would unconsciously start straightening piles of my paper. Luckily he liked me so it was only a small issue with him.

[Mulligan]

treatment rooms are very tidy. my personal office, i always clean it up in the morning. end of the day it is a total disaster with charts, bills, notes and everything else...so between the two places, a solid 5.

in drawer: deodorant, nail clippers, tooth paste and brush, gum comb and other various personal hygiene effects.

[EnochRoot]

If you're too neat, I think less of you.

I need discombobulation for the ideas to flow. Otherwise the ideas stop and look at the anal rentention and the meaning gets lost or misconstrued.

[tennbengal]

It's bad.

[rass]

Looking GOOD in here!

[BSF21]

You're free to go Pruitt, looks like a very good dog from here.

[Gunpowder]

I'm at a 4 but I'd like to be closer to an 8. Working at home so kind of hamstrung by the whatever-was-available furnishings that I threw in here....if we owned the house I'd probably have done all that but it just doesn't feel right to build a bad-ass office room in a rental.

[Steve of phpBB]

My desk is a disaster, mostly paper and books. I want to make sure I don't throw out anything important, so I don't throw out anything. It just stays there until it reaches critical mass and my secretary forces me to clean it up. (And not in the fun way either.)

[elflaco]

four current work areas...
office in NY.. just moved in to it in april -- window on the 13th floor -- office is pretty well laid out -- got my white boards adn screens.. dual monitors. very clean and organized. . 10
home office -- set up like in ny -- dual monitors, no wires.. all wireless.. desk space is clear the rest of it, being in my basememt ... can get a big messy... 6
houston.. i share my boss's office when i'm in town -- super clean. no screens, just desk and chairs. great view..8
wilmington... i share with a local guy when i'm there -- he's super messy.. stacks of papers all over the floor. 5
glendale -- the spare conference room is mine when i town -- great view, no mess anywhere. 10.

so 8.

[The Sybian]

I haven't seen my office desk in months. Last time I was there, I taught a full day training, and didn't stop at my desk. This is the least paper intensive job I've ever had, so usually around an 8.

My government job was highly paper intensive, so everyone had stacks of files, except for one attorney who was extremely anal, OCD, and into Feng Shui. He left his desk at a 10 every night, with just a pad of post-it notes on his desk, perfectly parallel to the edges of his desk. On a bet, we turned the pad at the slightest angle to see if he'd notice. Sure enough, he flipped out that the cleaning woman must have bumped it.