Have you ever taken the time to think about what a temp might say if they were to sit at your work desk for the day? I mean seriously, think about being a total stranger that’s put at someone else’s to carry out their operations.
Maybe they’ll be exposed to clutter, maybe they’ll be exposed to intense organization – regardless, the state of your work desk can say a lot about you as a worker, and you as a person. For me personally, organization is constant state of my desk because I simply always want to know where everything is in case someone needs to find something.
However, everyone is different and you’d be surprised how many bright minds have creative and messy workspaces.
Like I said, everyone is different so let’s hope that the following article helps you determine what type of worker you really are. And next time you’re calling out sick for the day, show some mercy on the temp that’s going to be doing your job – they could use an environment that they could thrive in as well!
The Traveler: Physically Present in the Workplace, Mentally on Vacation
The traveler is someone that can be taken two ways: either they love to get away when they have vacation time, or they just simply don’t enjoy being where they are and are looking for greener pastures.
While either are not necessarily awful offenses, sometimes they can insinuate a lack of commitment to their current situation or a sense of absence that superiors could determine to be detrimental to their work performance.
Confirm you’re committed to the present and open for business by minimizing indicators that you’d rather be elsewhere. Some of the key details of the traveler’s workspace include…
- Any form of a countdown calendar that indicates when your next getaway from the office might be. Whether it’s fast-approaching or months away.
- Replacing the pencils and pens in your cupholder with a bunch of drink umbrellas.
- Pinned up vacation or cruise brochures that are overlapping important dates and key presentations on your cork board.
The Sticky Note Connoisseur: Ditch the Post-Its and Embrace Technology
I once had a boss that would post sticky notes to my computer screen before I stepped into work every day. At first I was kind of perplexed why he just didn’t want to tell me this stuff himself, you know…by word of mouth.
But once it became routine, it became a method that I adopted myself in order to maintain some sense of organization in the workplace and of my priorities. Little did I realize how inefficient this method was and little did I realize how much a gust of wind could greatly impact your day!
Once a light breeze began to inflict it’s wrath as my worst enemy, I realized the necessity to embrace technology.
That’s right, I was the sticky note connoisseur. You know you’re a sticky note connoisseur when…
- Sticky notes have become part of your desk’s landscape, no matter where the location is – computer screen, desk itself, next to your keyboard, etc.
- You have a carefully curated order in which your stick notes have formed organized clutter that only you know the sequencing of.
- Your desk projects disorganization to others but somehow you see nothing wrong with it.
The Minimalist: Do You Actually Even Work Here?
The minimalist is someone that chooses not to occupy their space with personal belongings or personalizations of their own. Instead, they choose to opt for a more cleanly and noncommittal approach that can either send the wrong message to superiors or mean that you are not someone who enjoys clutter.
At the end of the day, your job is a JOB and it does not require you to post family pictures or far off destinations on your cubicle’s cork board, but it does make people wonder if you already have one foot out the door.
From a personal standpoint, the minimalist is someone that resonates character traits of being disciplined, cautious in their approach and also conscientious of those who may work at their space for one reason or another.
It must not be misconstrued for someone who simply does not care enough, but someone who cares about their security and would rather not settle down only to pack back up again. You know you’re a minimalist when…
- You can look at your desk from an outside perspective and wonder why you never have to clean up your desk before you leave for the day.
- People always talk about how “clean looking” your desk is and how you don’t have any personal belongings on it.
- Internally you always question your job security.
