Why cleaning your office & computer regularly is essential
February 2, 2016Take a quick look around your office. Is it clean, tidy and organised? Hopefully it is, but we wouldn’t be surprised if there is at least one area that could do with a bit of a spruce up or someone’s desk is covered in papers, empty coffee cups and last week’s leftover lasagne.
Some people claim they work better with a little bit of disorganisation on their desk, but there are plenty of reasons why a clean office, computer and workstation is essential to productivity.
Related: Productivity hacks – How to be a morning person & get stuff done
After all, cleanliness is next to godliness. Apparently.
Makes a good impression
If you walked into a shop and it was filthy, you probably wouldn’t hesitate to turn heel and head back out the door. Why would your customers or clients be any different? You only get one chance to make a first impression, so make it count. Ensure a sparkling clean office when they walk in and it’ll get the relationship off to a great start.
Health benefits
If you don’t ensure your office is clean, then you’re putting your employees’ and colleagues’ health at risk. Offices aren’t the most hygienic places in the world anyway; there’s even a name for when several people get ill at work – Sick Building Syndrome.
Whether it’s mold, dust, bits of food or just general grime, if you want to reduce the number of sick days at work, then giving employees a clean place in which to work is a good start.
Boost morale and productivity
No-one wants to go to work in an office that’s grubby and dirty. Well, no-one of sane mind anyway. Giving people a clean and tidy working environment will put them in a better frame of mind to work, boosting productivity and morale in the process. Of course, the inverse is true as well. Those working in a messy, dirty office will generally be less productive and less inclined to work to their potential.
Keep office equipment working
As with everything in life, if you don’t look after your office equipment then it simply won’t last or work as well as it should. Over time, dust and dirt will naturally build up on computer screens, keyboards, printers, CDs, etc, and if left untreated can become a problem. The dust can gather in nooks and crannies, USB ports, CD drives, and can lead to things not working as they should.
How to start cleaning your office
Well there are plenty of ways to make sure your office is clean. The most obvious thing to do is to hire an office cleaner, and if your budget allows then this is definitely recommended. If you rent an office in a shared building then you may already have a cleaner.
However, you can also help your employees and colleagues to keep their workstation clean in a number of ways. Providing anti-static dust wipes makes it quick and easy to get rid of dust and grubby fingerprints on computer/laptop screens, whilst CD/DVD cleaner will help prevent discs from skipping or data on them being lost. Even just providing hand sanitiser can make a big difference to office and worker cleanliness.
Also, don’t forget to consider other areas of the office. Your workstation might now be gleaming, but if the kitchen or toilets are still pretty grim then you’re still running the risk of making staff sick.
