Your immediate environment is in many ways a reflection of your mental state. Look around your desk right now. If it's covered with clutter, disorganized papers and pens that don't work anymore, then chances are that you're feeling somewhat disorganised and overworked. Am I right? The same also goes for your computer - if your computer Desktop is just a huge selection of shortcuts and files that you haven't sorted in months and your inbox is crammed with e-mails you haven't read and don't intend to - then again it's probably safe to assume that work is somewhat getting on top of you.

The reason for this is partly that we arrange our environment based on the way we're thinking, but also partly that our environment can affect our state of mind. If your computer is filled with files you don't use then that not only suggests you have lots of things on your mind and no time for sorting, but it also means that you won't be able to easily find the files when you want them and that you won't be able to easily enforce new systems to keep things in check.

The easiest way to break this vicious cycle though, is to just dedicate some time to clearing up your computer and your digital and physical work space. Here are some tips as to how you can go about doing that.

Use Folders

Folders are your friends and the more you use the easier it will be to find what you want to find. At the same time, you should also use lots of folders so that you don't end up with too many files in a single location. The fewer files you have in any one place, the easier it will be to sort through a single folder and find the things that you want. Likewise you should keep these folders logical and name them in such a way that you can easily find the things you're looking for by following the hierarchy - even when you don't actually remember where you left them.

Keep Things Light

In fact, this 'lightness' should also carry over to your computer so that you don't have too many files on your machine at any one time. Designate regular times to sort through your machine and delete the files that you never have too much on your hard drive and so that you can carry out searches quickly and easily. Your computer should reflect the work that you are working on currently rather than everything you've ever worked on or had an interest in. If you can't delete something, then putting it on an external hard drive or even a partition of your current hard drive is a good way to prevent it from cluttering your machine and your mental space. Out of sight, out of mind as they say...

Use the Best Software

A lot of computer software is literally about organization and systems and so you should easily be able to find things that will help you to keep your computer organised. Whether it's a cloud based note taking app or a spreadsheet, try out software aimed at power users and see if it can help you.