Simple Homemaking | An Office Space

It is so nice to have an office of your own, a place where you can care for all the office tasks that a homemaker must deal with.  The phone calls, the computer work, the permission slips, the bills to be paid and all the other items that must be dealt with to run a household.  These tasks vary for each of us.  Some homemakers take care of all or some of the finances, some do not.  Some of us may have a part or full time job outside of the home, some may work at home, some may homeschool, some of us may volunteer, some may have children in multiple schools, some may plan all the vacations or be in the mist of purchasing property.

I find myself this year with many things to keep me busy in the office.  Each year brings a minor changes to my routines and responsibilities.  I have always managed all the finances in our home. I'm coordinating most of the planning, ordering, and purchasing of the remodel we are in the midst of right now.  This year I have four children in four different schools, coordinating with their schools and all of their various extracurricular activities sometimes feels like a full time job.  I have various responsibility at church.  We are in the process of purchasing a rental, a duplex, and I'm just beginning the adventure of figuring out all that will go into managing this new adventure.  I also do the bookkeeping for my husband's business.

I find a dedicated place to work a must to keep myself on track and feeling like I can manage all the things that need to be checked off the list.  Here a few ideas for how to manage your office work and space.

Create a Space | Whether this is a dedicated room, a desk set up in another space, or a mobile basket and laptop that you set up at your dining room table, have a place that you can use to sit and work on all these office task.

Going Digital & Paperwork | Paperwork can overrun a home quickly, especially if you have children.  From mail to schoolwork, from flyers to insurance forms, this could be a homemaking post in and of itself.  Go through all the papers as soon as you can. I go through it as soon as it comes through the door or when I find piles from my kids laying around the house.  I'm ruthless when it comes to getting rid of papers.  Have a system for going through paperwork quickly, only keep what is absolutely necessary, and recycle what you don't need.  Go digital as much as you can to limit what comes into your home and what you have to file away.  Use your phone to snap a photo of paperwork where you may need the information and use an organizing app on your phone to file it away. 

Physical Inbox | I find an inbox a must (mine is an actual wooden box), a place where myself and my family can put all the paperwork that has to be dealt with later.  I go through my inbox 1-2 times a week, take care of what needs to be done, and then recycle or file when the item is completed.

Dedicated Time & A To Do List | I like to dedicate one day a week to office work, another couple hours a week to my church calling, and another couple hours of week to blogging.  Always have a running to do list of things that need to be done when you sit down to work in your office.  I make these list up when I plan on Sunday.  Then you always know what needs to be done.  Group task together like making phone calls, printing, sending emails, and filing.

Keep Your Space Tidy | This is the hardest for me.  I have so many different things to do and often find myself in the middle of a project and I don't want to put it all away because I will come back to it eventually.  Then it sits out and I come back to my office to work on something else that needs to get done and I'm working in a messy space which I find so distracting.  I'm realizing that it is worth it to clean up after each project, even if I haven't finished, storing these items away to finish at a later time is worth the couple minutes just so I can maintain a tidy space.  Starting your office work in clean space is inspirational and makes for a better workflow.  Beware of piles that can spring up all around you.  They seem to multiply but really don't take that much time to go through and put away if you can stay on top of them.  

Make It Inspirational | Add something pretty, an inspirational quote, pretty pens, a pretty planner or to do lists.  This can be so simple or very elaborate.  Just take the time to make your area pretty.

Office Supplies | Having functional and pretty office supplies can really make a difference in your office space.  Keep it simple, only keep what you use often.  I find pens, post-its, scissors, paperclips, a stapler, and tape are what I use daily.  These and these are my current favorite pens.  I've also recently purchased some of Magnolia's Hearth and Hand office supplies and have loved the look of them.

Keep It Simple | Don't complicate things.  If you currently don't have a space dedicated to work, start by finding and making a space.  If you currently have one and it is a mess, start by decluttering and organizing.  If you have a space and it is working but could use some freshening up, maybe take a couple of these tips to improve and make it that much more inspirational and functional.

I know that I will be working in my office over the next few months to make it more functional.  Also, as part of this remodel we will be transitioning our office space, so I plan to take advantage of this time to continue to streamline the space to make it as user friendly as possible.  There may be some of us as homemakers that feel that we don't need an office, but with all the many office related task that we have to accomplish throughout our days, a space dedicated to this type of work will serve us well as we manage our homes.

What type of office space do you use?  What things do you find helpful as  you manage the office work of your homes?