Do you have an employee, client or friend with a cluttered office or desk area that you are totally embarrassed or ashamed to show anyone? You know the type of person: little pieces of papers jammed into drawers and all over the place; the little yellow Post-it notes posted, in all sizes, all over the desk, computer monitor, walls, etc.; and `while you were out' message slips pinned to the shelves and the edges of the desk.

Or do you fit the description of the person just described? Some of these mild to chronically disorganised people, will sometimes even say and pledge, "sorry about the mess, one day soon I am going to get all this organised'' -- but let's be honest, that day has not arrived because in all the years you've known them, they have been untidy. And please if you are the person described, do not go get embarrassed or say: "Well, now, who does she think she's talking about''? Because, let's face it, if your offices or desk areas are disorganised and cluttered, everyone knows and your co-workers are talking.

Sometimes we involuntarily make up all sorts of excuses and are accepting about their, as one client referred to her manager, "eccentric cluttering'' habits.

If you know someone whose work area is messy, or your office, desk or workstation is cluttered, tis' the season to help yourself or the other person make some changes to their working environments. My colleague and mentor, Barbara Hempill, author of several organising books including `Taming the Paper Tiger', says that to get organised it is essential to have the proper tools. If you do not have the proper tools, you may be setting yourself up for failure time and time again without knowing the cause of that continuous pattern. One of the most essential tools needed is a system to help track time and business workloads.

I was one of the late bloomers in the paper vs. electronic era. I went kicking and screaming into the new age of electronics. In retrospect, I was a dark age organiser who was very comfortable with filed away pieces of papers, a rather large diary daily planner, a desk calendar and a Rolodex at home and in office. I would teach clients how to organise their Rolodexes and paper daily organisers, with all the trappings of their `to do' list and help them prepare binders for their long-term goal setting exercise.

Don't get me wrong, this method does work, but to be honest, with all the organising electronic tools available, becoming organised can be that much easier, faster and efficient, that is, if your are willing to learn the ropes.

I am convinced that old dogs, if they so choose, can learn new tricks.

Embarrassed by my well-used paper daily planner/organiser, my children purchased a personal digital assistant (PDA) and life has not been the same since.

The PDA is such a sophisticated tool that any businessperson who is serious about getting organised should examine this unique tool. There are now several PDAs on the market and you can either visit the local computer stores or go on the Internet and check into online sites by either using your search engines or the following sites: www.palm.com www.symbian.com www.handspring.com www.3com.com www.franklin.com These PDAs are so clever, some offer options such as synchronising your data from the PDA to your computer desktop, beaming your business card to others, messaging, wireless Internet access and now digital camera attachments.

These little devices will organise your daily workload, addresses (business and personal), memos, and percentages, all at the tip of a stylus. Utilising the electronic methods, unlike the traditional paper method, offers you numerous ways to store and retrieve your records.

Choose carefully, and remember that even the most computer challenged individual or stubborn paper pusher can find the Personal Digital Assistants helpful and user friendly.

Cindy Swan is a Professional Organiser with over 20 years of office administrative managerial experience. She is a member of the National Association of Professional Organizers. Her column appears in the business section twice a month.

P.s. In my article printed in The Royal Gazette on December 11, 2000, one of the web sites in Bermuda should have read www.bermudagrocer.com. Sorry for any inconvenience. Sometimes when the wrong online addresses are noted or if you are having trouble reaching a particular domain you can try the various search engines such as yahoo, AltaVista or change the .com to .net, .org or if in Bermuda .bm. If you do not have time to get it all done, do not ruin your holiday, just do the things that are possible within the time constraints left. Merry Christmas and a productive New Year, with as little stress as possible. May 2001 bring the best of organised times to come!