Tame Paper and Boost Productivity with a Command Center

Are you struggling to keep track of schedules, important documents, and paper clutter? If so, you might benefit from creating a command center, a tool that aids in paper organization and productivity. A professional home organizer can work with you to determine what features and style of command center will best support your lifestyle, and get you set up for success.

WHAT IS A COMMAND CENTER?

A command center is a designated area in your home where you temporarily hold and organize items that aren’t yet completed; ones you are not ready to dispose of or transfer to a longer-term filing system. They’re meant to remind you to do something and are a bit nagging when you see them. Thus, it’s important for a command center to hold only current and future-focused items and be free of old, outdated, and irrelevant items. If the system you use for managing your life is cluttered, you will experience unnecessary mental strain.

Common command center items include unopened mail, unpaid bills, important dates such as doctor appointments, notes for upcoming projects or travel plans, shopping lists, coupons, to-do lists, business cards, receipts, and kids’ school and artwork.

There are as many ways to create a command center as there are people. Here are a few of the variations I see in my work as a professional home organizer working with my Chicago-area clients.

Simple or complex. If your life is relatively uncomplicated or you are a minimalist, you may find that a simple command center is all you need. On the other hand, if you are managing a particularly busy life or household, something with a few more components may be beneficial.
For a household of one person or a large family. Everyone needs some way to organize their lives and the physical items that accompany this process, whether it’s just you or a household of several people with varying schedules and needs.
Paper-based and visible or mostly electronic. Even in this digital age, many people prefer paper because it works better with their processing or learning style. For those who have adopted electronic filing and calendar systems, paper may be less important. Nowadays, most people fall somewhere in the middle, using a mix of systems to manage their lives. For example, some people have a digital master calendar, but use a visual wall calendar to make certain appointments more visible to themselves and family members.
Aesthetically maximalist or minimalist. The internet offers significant command center design inspiration with a focus on colors, layout, and materials. If designing a command center with a particular aesthetic motivates you to use and maintain it, that’s great! But if choosing a design aesthetic intimidates or turns you off, you can skip this part entirely.
Located anywhere from kitchen to home office. A command center should be in the place where it’s most likely to get used and where it will cause the least amount of frustration for people in the home. Common locations include the entryway, a back room or mud room, the kitchen, or a home office.

If it fits your personal style and does what you need it to do, you have the right command center for you!

HOW A HOME ORGANIZER CAN HELP

Once you’ve decided to work with a professional home organizer on developing or improving a command center, here are some of the ways she can help you create a system that works in your home.

Interview you to understand how you operate. She may ask how you currently go about processing your mail. Do you have existing systems for managing to-do lists, shopping lists, and important appointments? Are you more digital-based, paper-based, or some combination of both? What’s working well, and what isn’t? Do you have a long-term filing system and a way for processing items into it? Do you have a sense of what can safely be tossed or recycled, and when it’s best to do that?
Make recommendations. Based on what you tell her is working well or not, she can make recommendations on strategies that are a good fit for your personal needs and style. She can provide tips on reducing clutter and prioritizing what’s truly important in a command center.
Find an appropriate location for your command center. She will work with you to find an ideal spot for your command center such as a part of the kitchen, or a small desk and wall space near and entry/exit point in your home.
Determine what tools and products you need to be successful. Command centers tend to feature common items. Some products help make lists and appointments visible; think bulletin boards, whiteboards, and wall calendars. Other items help with processing paper: a small shredder, recycling bin for junk mail, stapler, three-hole punch, binders, or small set of well-labeled file folders. Your organizer will help you choose the right products and set them up for you.
Return to improve upon the system. As with anything in life, it’s better to seek progress over perfection. Your first command center doesn't have to be perfect and can change over time. Once you’ve used your new system for a few weeks or months, your organizer can return to help you troubleshoot and make improvements.

Getting organized can be tough, especially when managing multiple schedules, appointments, and responsibilities. A command center is a great way to keep it all coordinated. By customizing it to meet your unique needs, you can reduce stress and increase productivity. A professional home organizer can help create a command center that matches your personal style.

I can help!