Your guide to a liberated office

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Things are looking up! There are new jobs out there and new paths to be forged, but for some reason, you're feeling stuck and submerged in the past and lost in a heap of clutter.

If you could just get your home office organized and cleared up, you think, you'd find the energy to discover where your next stop is on the love-your-job train.

Your ticket is Mary Lambert's “The Ultimate Guide to Clearing Your Clutter” (Cico Books, 2010). You haven't read a home-organization book as thorough or appealing (or thoroughly appealing!).

Lambert, feng shui master and author of nine books, shows not only how to clean up the mess and get organized but also how to open doors to the success that can be had by creating a positive energy flow through natural means, such as feng shui, color choice, crystals, and delightful aromas.

Sorting it all out

“The flow of chi in an office must be strong and yang to encourage a positive attitude,” Lambert says. “If your desk is cluttered and the floor is covered with boxes, reports, and files, chi will get stuck, and your creativity and decision-making skills will be blocked, causing you to work in a confused, disorganized way.”

First thing to do? Go through each paper on your desk and floor and sort what to keep and what to shred and recycle.

Get a good filing system and go through your mail, invoices, and Post-it Notes.

“Don't stop with the paper,” Lambert advises. “We work in a tech age, so do the same thing on your laptop and your cell phone and your Blackberry. Clean up the files, pitch what you don't need, and clean up the desktop. Your goal is to clean off your desk and then each day, leave it clean.”

It's a tall order but well worth striving for and far easier to achieve if you start each day organized.

Feng shui it

Once you've cleared out the junk and organized what's left, think about how to position your furniture for optimal energy flow.

“Ideally, it's good to place your desk so that it's facing the door with your back to a wall for support,” Lambert notes. “If you can't manage that, try to use a high-backed chair, and avoid sitting with a window at your back.”

Color me creative

Warm shades or red, orange, and yellow get the creative juices flowing. Use desk lamps with daylight light bulbs. Here's a fun surprise: Citrus oils, such as lemon, lime, and orange, will get your motor running.

“It's true!” Lambert says. “The Japanese have done studies that show that workers produce more when these aromatic oils were introduced to scent the workplace.”

Bad day at the office?

“If there has been conflict or upset,” Lambert says, “you can clear out the resultant negative energy. Try a sage smudge stick or burn a stick of sandalwood incense.”

If neither of these is an option, try simply clapping. “Ever notice how, when you're at a concert or presentation and everyone starts clapping at the end, how it changes the atmosphere, and the auditorium seems to fill with good energy? It works anywhere.”

Crystallize your success

Carry a beautiful citrine crystal in your handbag, or hold one in the palm of your hand while visualizing financial success and abundance, Lambert advises. “Fluorite is a good crystal sitting next to a computer,” she says. “It soaks up electromagnetic emissions — radiation that we know all electronic gadgets emit and drain us of energy.

‘‘Quartz is another good crystal to keep. It is powerful when you're doing healing work; it soaks up negativity and gives people focus and momentum. We know this; it's why it's been used in watches and timepieces for decades.”

At the end of the day, it's all about results. “Use any tool you can to help you achieve what you want,” Lambert suggests. “Another great tool? Take some time to be grateful for what you have. It lifts the soul. That's what it's really all about. I just love it when I come away feeling I've helped give hope and guidance.”