There are many tasks and assignments that office employees should fulfill in a span of time. It usually seems endless and winding that most of them resort to multitasking in order to finish every project thrown their way. Multitasking is often praised but it actually leads to a cluttered workspace. Employees have cluttered minds that reflect in their desks that day by day, look out of control. Papers would be everywhere, pens would be disappearing, devices don’t have a permanent position—it’s just clutter over clutter. Organizing must be introduced in one way or another to get rid of this chaos.
While some may think this does not affect performance, then you must do more reading on the matter. Recent studies have shown that cluttered surroundings can negatively affect one’s mental state including productivity at work. You would get more distracted and find it more difficult to concentrate. You won’t be in a good mood, especially if you are a clean freak. You may not notice but you won’t be motivated to work and you don’t finish as many tasks as quickly as you used to before. You may influence others in the workplace who might have been looking at you from afar.
You might even feel guilty and helpless when you see that you’ve done nothing to clean your desk and get rid of its clutter. As an aftereffect, you won’t be able to deliver the effective work performance required from you.
Imagine the mood booster you get when you listen to music while working. It also works in the same way with clustering your belongings less. You may take charge of your work area and clean it up to the best of your capability because it will definitely help you work more efficiently and reward you with job satisfaction.
Aside from stellar work performance, you also give your health and happiness a prime offer. Trust us that when you finally get down to cleaning your desk and reducing clutter, you are giving yourself with care and happiness that it needs and deserves.
You may sport a minimalist desk setup to keep up with today’s modern working environments that are effective in reducing clutter and boosting productivity. Not to mention, a minimalist setup is also famous among gamers and creative types.
What is a minimalist standing desk setup?
But first, what counts as a minimalist standing desk setup? Simply put, this type of desk setup should have little to no clutter on the surface of the desk. The most stripped-down version only includes a monitor, a desktop computer or laptop, a keyboard and mouse on the desk. Everything else that you use is out of sight.
Minimalism basically features clean lines and vacant white spaces. Of course, there would be a timeslot during the day where your desktop space would be filled with other tools and documents because you are currently using them. After use, they will be stored in their permanent location in your workstation.
If you want to strip it down some more, your desk should only have your laptop hooked up to a power supply. While this means no presence of any clutter at all, it also entails you hunching over which is not an advisable ergonomic solution.
We share some ideas below if you want a Zen space in your home where you could do some work or you are simply tidying up your workspace in the office.
Minimalist standing desk setup for home office
Any home office setup is dependent on your personal style. What do you need to match with your home decor? How do you make it as minimal as possible?
1. To take the clutter off your desk, instead of using standing photo frames, hang them on the wall behind your desk. You may install floating shelves and have the frames stand up there. You may also hang them using macrame strings if that’s your aesthetic. Not only will it take these items off your desk, but it also gives you something nice and motivating to look at as you go about the workday.
2. Replace your keyboard and mouse with wireless units. You won’t have to worry about wires and cables that many see as an eyesore and take away the minimalist modern look that you are going for. When you go wireless, you don’t need cable management anymore because there won’t be any tangled cables that you have to worry about.
3. If you can dedicate a separate room for your minimalist home office, then that is the most ideal. It would be easy to stick to your ideal aesthetic that is quiet and minimal. If there is no extra room, then just make sure that the desk set-up is kept it in its area for greater concentration and focus.
4. Following the point above, a part of any room should be designated as a workspace. It should not be used for other purposes. Clean it all the time and make it as minimal as possible to help set your mind in focused mode once you sit down to work.
5. If you are really constrained with space, you may use a part of your home for two purposes: workstation by day and a recreation area on evenings and weekends.
6. Whether you have a big or small space, your office furniture of choice will make a huge difference. You give a new outlook for your work when you are able to sit and stand at any time throughout the day. This will help you maintain a minimalist desk setup.
Other minimalist desk setup ideas
Whether it’s for work or play, there are various ways that you could organize your minimalist desk and make sure it looks neat.
1. Use a compact filing cabinet to secure your documents and make them accessible within arm’s reach. This will help you be organized and at the same time, save space.
2. Plants, even fake ones, can brighten up any workstation. If you need energy for your workdays at home, use neutral-colored or white planters for small and large office plants. Even a couple of small plants will already do the trick. You are able to stay true to the minimalist aesthetic while giving your workspace a lively boost.
3. Try attaching a LED rope to the back of your desk with tape. Having a backlit desk will make your monitor screen easier on the eyes and also give a more spacious look to your desk. This also gives your workstation a brighter, more modern look.
4. Do not forget an LED desk lamp as it is an essential tool for your workstation. It will instantly light up everything that you are currently using. For optimal illumination, you may attach specialized lamps to the top of your monitor without causing any glare on the computer screen.
5. Do not have food, drinks, and other non-work-related items on your desk. These would only cause you to lose discipline and concentration while at work. When you put them in a different area, you would be forced to stand up and walk to get them, taking that necessary short break from work. The separation of work and play is also good for your productivity and mental health. It promotes a minimalist work desk environment.
6. To remove more wires in your workspace, use a small Bluetooth speaker or wireless Bluetooth headphones. These types of ear devices will take up less space and reduce dependency on wires that add clutter to your workspace.
Final Thoughts:
For a clearer and more organized mind while working at home, make sure to clean your workspace and get rid of clutter. We all know it’s more distracting to work from home than in an office so assigning an area for your work setup at home is essential to achieving work productivity.
