Dear Marla: My desk is a mess!
If I had a penny for every time I heard those 5 little words
Wires and cords
A few months after my father died, my mom asked me to see why her fax machine wasn’t working. Like me, my dad didn’t like clutter, especially clutter that could be controlled, but unlike me, he was partial to “hiding” things where he thought no one would look — surprise! What I found hidden under the carpet was a muddle of wires that would put Medusa’s coif of snakes to shame.
Turns out my dad had plugged the fax machine into the X10, or “hot,” electrical outlet, meaning when the switch was “on,” the fax machine worked; when it was “off,” it didn’t. Can you say: “Arghhh?”
With the advent of wireless technology (Wi-Fi), the “wire-clutter” crisis is tapering off, albeit slowly. By now, most people have a wireless mouse, printer and monitor, but for those who don’t, the fix is easy. All it takes is a label maker and plenty of patience and fortitude to untangle, secure and label all the wires.
I suggest Belkin cable ties (available at any office supply store) as the perfect solution for securing loose wires and be sure to use an industrial-strength surge protector instead of the standard wall outlet.
The desktop
While the Merriam-Webster dictionary defines “desktop” as “the working surface of a desk,” Dictionary.com defines “desktop” as “the primary display screen of a graphical user interface, on which various icons represent files, groups of files, programs or the like, which can be moved, accessed, added to, put away or thrown away in ways analogous to the handling of file folders, documents, notes, etc., on a real desk.”
Simply put, just as you wouldn’t, or shouldn’t, pile papers, files and folders on top of your desk, you shouldn’t clutter your computer’s desktop screen with an excess of documents and folders.
The computer’s desktop should be saved for those icons denoting locations (i.e.: control panel, my documents, recycle and computer) and programs (i.e.: Adobe, Explorer, Word, Excel, QuickBooks and Outlook) you use all the time.
The only other icons on your desktop should be for those websites or programs you access all the time, such as eBay, the Weather Channel, the Naples Daily News and TripAdvisor, to name a few.
Individual documents you create, such as a letter written in Word, a spreadsheet in Excel or a Power Point presentation, are called “documents” and should be saved in a “folder” under “My Documents” and not on the desktop screen.
To view a great “how to” demonstration, go to YouTube and enter “file management” in the search box or visit: youtube.com/watch?v=_RMw6195Kr88
And the desk top
You’ve seen the trick where the magician grabs hold of the tablecloth, counts to three and with one quick jerk, yanks the tablecloth off the table leaving everything in place? In my world, the cloth would stay, and the stuff would go.
To have a clear head, you need a clear desk; to achieve this state of clarity, you have two choices; the first is to yank the proverbial tablecloth; the second is to “set” your desk just as you would “set” a table.
Keep it simple; placing a few pens and pencils; one ruler and a pair of scissors in a decorative container on your desk. Paper clips and such should be placed in a small, easy to reach dish on top of your desk, or in a drawer, and don’t forget to purchase a good task light.
Keep desk accessories to a minimum; for the knickknacks, notes, fortunes, invitations, tickets and other stuff cluttering your desk, purchase a bulletin board and be sure to sort through the panoply of notes and whatnot at least once a month.
We invite you to send us questions about how to get and stay organized, which will be addressed in future columns.
Hint of the day: Take a photograph of your computer desktop, as well as a photo of each screen on your Smartphone. Print out the photos and set-aside in a safe place. If you computer or phone ever crashes and needs to be reconfigured, you’ll have an easy-to-follow diagram at your fingertips.
Apache Junction, AZ– This year, the City of Apache Junction will be holding a Household Hazardous Waste, White Goods and Electronic Recycling collection event.
