Make your office life fun and clutter-free with these clever and quick inventions made from everyday things around you.
Keeping things in order can be pretty simple if you have any of these supplies lying around. If you’re worried your colleagues will raise their eyebrows at what you are doing, trust us, they’ll come around to these nifty ideas.
Clip binders are great as…
…cable organisers
A simple item that keeps paper clumped together is so much more. Especially when you have like 10,1233 (yes, that’s an exaggerated number) cables lying around.
Attach these clip binders to the edge of your desk, slot the cables through the gaps and you’ll have them arranged in the order you desire. Great for winding your earphones, so you don’t have to untangle them anymore.
Sticky notes are the answer to
…a clean keyboard
There’s probably a load of crumbs (and all sorts of unmentionable stuff) hiding in the crevices on your keyboard.
Before you go buy those tiny vacuum cleaners that promise to suck everything up, here’s a simple (and infinitely cheaper) solution – sticky notes. Smack the sticky end onto the keyboard and be prepared to be grossed out by the amount of dirt it picks up.
Reuse the spring from an old pen as
… a cord maintainer
You won’t usually notice it as it’s seemingly insignificant and well-tucked away. But if you have several dried-out pens and a couple of well-used charging cables lying around, this tip would come in highly handy.
Simply wrap the spring around the cable, slide it to the end and your cable should stay straight and won’t fray that easily. There you go. A simple DIY measure for an everyday use.
Turn an egg carton into
…A laptop stand
Aesthetically, it doesn’t look as good as an actual laptop stand. But it is just as practical.
The various gaps in the egg carton allow air circulation, which is essential when the laptop heats up and needs to pump hot air out. That ventilation can mean life-or-death for your poor notebook before it dies from a heatstroke.
Paper clips don’t just hook papers…
…they’re also frame holders
Wait, what? Is that even possible? Yes, if your office cubicle walls have a soft fabric. Just bend the paper clip into a hook shape, poke it through the fabric and you’ll get a modified metal hook.
And for what, you ask? Why, to place framed photos of your loved ones on the wall of course.
Don’t throw away cardboard boxes
…turn them into makeshift doors
Try this out if it doesn’t turn you into a radical misfit in the office.
This works only if you’re surrounded by cubicle walls. So let’s say you do. Grab two pieces of cardboard boxes, cut them to half the height, maybe even the full length, of your cubicle.
Stick them on the walls with some strong velcro (tape works, but it’s not as sturdy) and voila, instant swing doors that turn your cubicle into a pseudo private office. You can even paint the cardboard doors in the style of a Western saloon door. Just don’t get too carried away with being creative and have your bosses wondering what you spend your free time on.
Stay focused with…
…ermm, StayFocusd. All you need is an internet connection to download the Google Chrome extension.
Yes, if you’re afraid of getting carried away with mindless surfing, you can set a limit to how much time you spend on specific sites. Exceed the time limit and the site is blocked till the timer cools down. We admit, blocking access to your favourite sites sounds a little cruel, but this is really all in the name of improving your work life and efficiency.
