Clean Your Desk Day: Why It Matters

I’m no slob, but I’m definitely not a neat-freak, either.

As much as I’d love to argue that my coexistence with clutter is a result of my creative mind, the truth is that my lack of housekeeping hurts my creativity more than it helps.

I am especially bad about hoarding SD cards.

I mean, just look at these piles! Some of these were haphazardly labeled with sticky notes; most of them were abandoned (until I bothered to double-check their contents).

So, I decided to make a change.

I told my boss Anne that I was planning on buying an SD card organizer. She recently surprised the team with something better, though.

Behold: the Official TapRooT® Video Organizer!

Custom-built by her husband, it’s a simple but effective tool for our entire team to organize and share our files.

I think little moments like this demonstrate how improvement is systemic. 

I could have whipped out some more sticky notes and cleaned up the pile that was in front of me, but that wouldn’t have solved the underlying issue.

Things like housekeeping, carefulness, and communication are buildable skills, but we can’t effectively build those skills without the right tools under the right guidance.

That’s why “Housekeeping NI” is a root cause on our Root Cause Tree® Diagram with advice on the Corrective Action Helper® Guide. Actionable advice is always more helpful than a “do better”.

Happy Clean Your Desk Day. I encourage everyone reading to clean up your spaces — and to put some thought into cleaning your systems, too.

If you’re interested to learn more about systematic improvement, send us a message for our free newsletter: the Root Cause Analysis Network™. Anne hand-picks the best articles, videos, and courses about RCA every week.