A Sneak Peek into the home of Professional Organizer Stephanie LH Calahan of Illinois and Founder/CEO of Calahan Solutions, Inc.
Ever wonder how a business performance and personal productivity consultant organizes her office... Stephanie went all out giving us a personal tour of her space! I have to confess that Stephanie sent me her info a while back... I lost it. Yes. Yes I did. Thankfully she brought it to my attention and I was able to search my email inbox and find her! #whoopsydaisy #blushblush
HER ORGANIZED SPACE: Home Office
1) This is my ACTION SYSTEM. Every item of paper that requires action is in this graduated file holder. It is easily accessible and in immediate view so that I don’t lose track of important items I need to DO to move my business forward.
2) This is my EASY ACCESS SYSTEM. This cabinet is on casters and can move for easy access. Each drawer is labeled and I can get to what I need quickly. I store items that I use on a daily basis in this cart.
3) DUAL MONITORS. My main source computer is my laptop, but when I’m not traveling; my second monitor is connected to increase my ability to get things done. Microsoft researchers have found that you can increase your productivity from 9-50 percent! My active work is on one monitor while my other monitor holds the windows that I check periodically, such as social media.
4) LOTS OF WATER. One of the fastest “cures” for foggy thinking is to increase your water intake. Did you know that the average person is dehydrated? Add to that, our brains are made of mostly water. If you are dehydrated, you diminish your ability to think clearly.
5A) MODULAR FILING CABINETS. I Love my Levenger file cabinets! This particular model allows me to add drawers as I have an increased need for filing. I have them within arms’ reach so that I can get to what I need quickly.
5B) PAPER TIGER FILING. One of my favorite office organizing tools is Paper Tiger (http://www.FindInFiveSeconds.com). I use this tool both in my home and work office.
5B) PAPER TIGER FILING. One of my favorite office organizing tools is Paper Tiger (http://www.FindInFiveSeconds.com). I use this tool both in my home and work office.
6) OFFICE PHONE WITH HEADSET. I am on the phone throughout the day talking with my coaching clients. My headset is an invaluable productivity tool! By using a headset, I’m able to be hands free to take notes. This sounds very minor, but I have many clients that have complained of back/neck pain that distracts them from their work. When they change their phone setup, their pain goes away and do does the distraction.
7) CLEAR SPACE TO THINK AND WORK. As you can see, I have two desks in my office. One holds my computer and all corresponding technology. However, when I need to really think through a project, learn new information or focus on a client problem, visual distractions would be a problem. So, I turn around and use my “executive” desk for that type of work. The clear space allows me to stay focused.
HER ORGANIZING STYLE:
This is my library. It is on the opposite wall from my technology space. One thing that surprises many people that come into my office is how I have my material arranged on the shelf. It is not alphabetical by author or title. Each shelf holds a topic – marketing and PR, organizing, productivity and time management, self-development, etc. I often forget titles and authors, so organizing by either of those methods, would make it hard for me to find what I’m looking for. I’m visual, so I can go to my time management shelf and know that the orange book holds what I’m looking for.
This is my library. It is on the opposite wall from my technology space. One thing that surprises many people that come into my office is how I have my material arranged on the shelf. It is not alphabetical by author or title. Each shelf holds a topic – marketing and PR, organizing, productivity and time management, self-development, etc. I often forget titles and authors, so organizing by either of those methods, would make it hard for me to find what I’m looking for. I’m visual, so I can go to my time management shelf and know that the orange book holds what I’m looking for.
*If you're a professional organizer + you'd like to be featured on "The Organizer's House"... drop me an email and let me know! I've got room for you~
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It is nice to work in a well-organized space. Some can get easily distracted by cluttered and unorganized objects. On my part, I clean my desk as I sit and go. I organize the files on my desk, and I do the same with soft copies. Post-its work for me and color coordination helps me remember things easily. So basically my files are color-coordinated.
Posted by: Willaude Gore | October 26, 2011 at 12:47 PM
Willaude is right - one of the best ways to organize is to have an organized way of working. You basically won't leave any clutter behind that way. Another thing is to have labeled storage bins, notebooks and others. That way, organizing is basically done in a touch-and-go manner!
Posted by: Blake Mitchell | January 20, 2012 at 10:09 AM