National Clean Your Desk Day

National Clean Your Desk Day - Monday, January 13, 2025

Career Weird National Work

National Clean Your Desk Day’s all about preparing your workspace for the new year and beginning things on the right note. The holiday falls on the second Monday in January. This year, it’s January 13. Remember, a messy desk is an invitation to chaos! A clean desk, on the other hand, helps you focus, be more productive, and generally makes you feel good about your workspace. And when we say clean we don’t just mean physical clutter. That’s correct, your computer desktop counts too. Drag those files into a nice, neat folder!

National Clean Your Desk Day timeline

2009

The first office chair race

Bad Koenig-Zell, Germany, was the first place to host the Office Chair Racing Championship. Around 70 people participated!

1876

A grand Office Furniture Expo

The Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia was all about new office equipment and furniture. The exposition featured fancy rolltop desks and novel new filing systems.

1800s

The first commercial offices

The first commercial offices began to appear in industrial cities throughout the the northern U.S.

1350

Desk has Latin origins

The Modern Latin word "desca" means "table to write on," and this gave birth to the word "desk".

5 Stunning Facts About Offices

  1. The typewriter changed the desk

    Once the typewriter was invented, the design of the desk evolved — because the rolltop design no longer worked.

  2. Darwin put wheels on the chair

    Charles Darwin revolutionized the office chair by adding wheels. This helped him get to his specimens quicker while in his study.

  3. Clean that keyboard

    There are 16 million microbes on a typical office keyboard. Yikes!

  4. Everyone loses things

    The average office employee spends six weeks per year looking for something.

  5. How clean is your office?

    Only 3 percent of offices clean their equipment regularly.

National Clean Your Desk Day Activities

  1. Say goodbye to the junk

    Throw. Shred. Recycle. Cleaning begins with getting rid of what you don't need.

  2. Organize, declutter, and destress

    A cluttered desk creates anxiety. And that doesn't help when you're in the midst of a busy workday.

  3. Make it an event

    Involve your colleagues. Have a "cleanest desk" competition. Post pictures of your desk on social media.

Why We Love National Clean Your Desk Day

  1. It helps you organize and declutter

    This day pushes you to clean and organize your workspace and make it more functional.

  2. It makes you more productive

    The serenity that comes with cleanliness helps you focus better and gets things done.

  3. Keeps things stress-free

    No more worrying about misplacing stuff, and no wasting time looking for things. Phew!

Also on Mon Jan 13, 2025...

Sticker Day
Jan 13