Married to Your Desk? 5 Tips for a Better Relationship

4. Get a document holder.

5. Think about where every object is placed and why.

Whether your desk is clean or cluttered, it probably holds a certain amount of stuff that you need for your job. I'm not talking about your Mark Zuckerberg bobblehead, mind you, but rather things like your phone, notepad and stapler (which I can only hope is a red Swingline -- I hear they don't bind up as much).

Take a minute to consider where these objects are and how their positioning helps or hinders your day-to-day work. If you hold your phone in your right hand, for example, does it sit on the right side of your desk? If you use a stapler to finish up your TPS reports, is it close enough that you can reach it without straining? All these little details add up to a big difference.

"You should think about your desk like you think about your car," says Cornell's Hedge. "You want to create a little envelope around you that has everything you need in a comfortable location."

Just don't get so comfortable that you accidentally doze off. I'm no scientist, but I'd say that could have an adverse effect on your productivity.