There are different types of work environments; there are quiet and clean offices where everything is done according to procedure, and offices with a chaotic corporate culture, where disorganisation and noise take over.
However, employees can take charge and organise themselves in a disorganised working environment with these tips:
Drown Out The Noise
If your colleagues are constantly milling about and loudly talking to each other and on the phone, it can be very distracting.
You can find yourself concentrating on a task, and having to stop repeatedly because your team members come up to talk to you or are simply being aloud around you.
If you have an office with a door, close it when you are working. If you work in a cubicle or an open space, consider putting on noise cancelling headphones, or regular headphones so that you can listen to music.
Just make sure to alert your boss or colleagues, otherwise they can consider you to be rude if they call your name and you don’t answer.
Document Everything
If you work for a scatterbrained boss, that individual is likely not able to find required documents or remember parts of conversations.
These types of employers can forget they gave you an extension on a project, have promised to help on an important task or have failed you in other ways.
If your senior is disorganised, you must document every important exchange in writing to protect yourselves and prove what you claim.
Try to email your boss requests instead of asking verbally.
If you had a conversation, email afterwards to confirm what was said and to have a written copy yourself.
Keep Your Own Important Files
If the filing system in your office is virtually non-existent, or files often go missing, keep your own important files.
If you are required to turn them into the main filing system, then keep copies of these files on your own desk.
This way, if you need to look something up, you can find it easily and quickly.
Initiate Change
Finally, consider being the one to initiate change in your workplace!
Ask your boss if you can set up a meeting on this topic, and with their permission, outline how your office can be improved to be more organised.
