National Clean Your Desk Day Date in the current year: January 8, 2024

The person credited with founding National Clean Your Desk Day, also known as National Clean Off Your Desk Day, is A. C. Viero of Clio, Michigan, but it is unclear when exactly it was celebrated for the first time. The choice of the date makes sense though; the second Monday of January is the day when most people finally accept that the holidays are over and dive into work. A de-cluttered workspace will help shake off the post-holiday blues and make it easier to stick to the New Year’s resolution to be more organized and productive.

The best way to celebrate National Clean Your Desk Day is, well, to clean your desk (and make a New Year’s resolution to keep it clean in the future). Start with removing everything from your desk, and when we say everything, we do mean everything. Wipe the surface of the desk with a damp cloth; you can use sanitizer spray or wipes for a more thorough cleaning. And don’t forget to get crumbs and dust out of your keyboard and sanitize it.

Now that the surface of your desk is clean and empty, you need to sort through all the things that you used to keep there. Get rid of non-working pens, junk mail, old business cards and stickers, outdated documents (don’t forget to shred them first), and anything else you don’t need anymore. Recycle everything that can get recycled and throw away the rest. Then place all the things you need back in their appropriate locations. While you’re at it, consider reorganizing your drawers if you seem to never be able to find anything when you need it.

Keep in mind that the words “clean” and “tidy” aren’t synonymous with “sterile” and “soulless”. If the rules in your office allow to keep personal items on your desk, brighten it up with a family photo, a cute potted plant, a flower in a small vase, etc. If you work from home and thus have no restrictions as to what you can and cannot keep on your desk, try not to go overboard; a whole bunch of not work-related items just will make your desk messy again.

If you can’t find the motivation to clean, de-clutter and organize your desk, you can turn it into a friendly workplace competition! Invite your coworkers to celebrate National Clean Your Desk Day with you and see who can clean their desk the fastest and whose desk will end up being the cleanest. Don’t forget to snap a photo of your clean desk and share it on social media with the hashtags #CleanYourDeskDay, #NationalCleanYourDeskDay and #NationalCleanOffYourDeskDay to spread the word about the holiday and encourage others to get rid of the mess.

How can you celebrate National Clean Your Desk Day if you always keep your desk clean? Of course, by helping a coworker, friend, or family member to de-clutter their desk and organize their workspace. The key here is to offer your help without implying that they are an untidy person.