From Clutter To Clear: Organizing Al Sunshine's Desk

DORAL (CBS4) -- Is a cluttered desk truly an indication of a cluttered mind? Nobody may know for sure but messy desks are part of a working life, just ask CBS4 Chief Consumer reporter Al Sunshine who thrives in his cluttered cubicle, but not for long.

While some people need everything neat and ordered, Al's busy schedule of bringing viewers the most up-to-date information on consumer and financial news, leaves him and his work space overwhelmed.

That's where Justin Klosky of The O.C.D. Experience (Organize and Create Discipline) comes in. It's Justin's job to clear out and clean up people's lives and now its Al's turn.

"It's something I see often," said Justin to CBS4's Lisa Petrillo. "It can be corrected very easily. It's how you teach an old dog new tricks."

The first step to clearing a cluttered desk is to toss unneeded old papers. In a stack on Al's desk, Justin found a paper from 2003 and a calendar from 2006.

"This is history, this is history," shouted Al.

The next step is to get rid of business cards. More than 200 were found sprawled across Al's desk. Justin says throw out old business cards and scan the ones you want to keep. You can also save them to your smart phone.

Next on the chopping block, all those knick knacks.

"Do you eat tuna a lot or is this a joke?" laughed Justin as he held up 2 old cans of tuna fish. It wasn't a joke. They were just a couple of the many props Al has saved from his previous consumer reports, like a recalled jar of peanut butter.

"Dump it," said Al. But not everything because some items found on his desk are collectibles.

"This is an actual crash test dummy that was used in a story. We're going to keep this. It has character," said Justin.

Trashing all of his stuff wasn't easy for Al, at first.

"The hoarder in me says I've been violated," said Al. But as the OCD team cleared away all the papers and dust, and as curious co-workers gathered around and watched, Al started to see the light and his desk. "I'm starting to see space," yelled Al.

Soon, the garbage piles grew larger and Al's desk was clearing. A drawer was created for working stories and the old tapes were recycled.

Al's old desk was a mass of messy papers, old magazines and junk. After the transformation, order was restored and productivity, said Justin, is what it's all about.

"It's not just saying let's start fresh, lets streamline, let's make it more efficient," stressed Justin.

Al was thrilled. "Unbelievable. 20-years of stuff. I was forced to do it, we had to do it. It's a cool thing. I know have new space to start piling on new stuff," said Al but added, "just kidding, I'm going to change."

If you're interested in the OCD team for yourself, check out their website at www.ocdexperience.com.