This spring you might want to think about a fresh start...like emptying the last year's worth of crap in your junk drawer, organizing your files, and taking home any unneeded clutter. In my previous office days, we had an official cleaning day. It was actually a lot of fun and we got a TON done. In the end, I think we had better peace of mind and higher productivity because of our newly cleansed office space. Here are some cleaning ideas we used:

• Group effort. We teamed up to clean shared areas of the office. We shared materials (Does anyone need file folders? I've got a billion extras!).
• Buy organizing stuff. Now is the time to see where you need to invest in drawer organizers, shelves, or bins.
• Recycle. Revisit your company's recycling policy and make sure none of that paper gets put in a landfill! 
• Virtual Organization. Delete unneeded folders, emails, and documents.

Visit Amsterdam Printing for more tips and cleaning game ideas! 

​And I'm not talking about a birthday party. It's that time of year where basketball fans across the country are glued to their TVs for March Madness. Get pumped, because tonight, we determine who will make it to the Elite 8 in the South and West Conferences. Game on! And besides trash talking your coworkers, there are ways you can celebrate at the office without losing productivity. They key is to embrace the Madness:

1. Encourage excitement by letting employees wear their favorite jersey or team gear one day.
2. Allow employees a 15-minute Madness break where they are allowed to watch one portion of the game per day. 
3. Designate one celebration day where staff can go all out with festive food and drink.
4. Gently remind employees of the company rules beforehand regarding personal Internet use, streaming guidelines, designated Madness watch times, etc.
5. Offer flexible working hours if you can accommodate. ​

Do you want to celebrate St. Patrick's Day at the office this week? Here are some quick, inexpensive ways to get a little festive at the office: 

• For Leprechaun bait, put out little bowls of Lucky Charms cereal for people to snack on.
• Leprechaun droppings are little green jelly beans! Yum.
• Make any clear soda festive by adding a drop or two of green food coloring.
• Decorations like a green table cloth can really brighten up a dreary office kitchen.
• Green Mardi Gras beads are cute, inexpensive table decorations.
• For a quick brain break, have coworkers race to make as many words from the words "leprechaun", "rainbow", and "shamrock". Offer a small prize for the winner. 
• Visit the Celebrations website for many more part ideas! 

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​Swingline Stack-and-Shred Auto Feed Shredders with 4-Digit Pin Lock:  Security level P-4, super cross-cut, shred sheets automatically or manually. Also, shred staples, paper clips, creidt cards and CDs.  The paper chambers lock while shredding and require a 4-digit PIN to open. Come with self-cleaning cutters.

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Spring weather leaves me feeling a little antsy during the workday. The sun is shining, my fingers start tapping, and I can't help but feel cooped up and wishing I were outside in the fresh, crisp air. Here are some quick tips to curb the fidgets:

1. Invest in desk equipment that is conducive to exercise and activity. Twist offers products like standing desks and exercise ball chairs that help you move throughout the day.
2. Walk. Take a walk at lunch or walk to pick your lunch up for carryout. Ask if your coworkers would be open to walking during a meeting instead of a conference room. Walk to talk to a coworker instead of instant messaging or calling them.
3. Take a break every hour to stretch and move at your desk. 

Staff at The Washington Post tested 12 exercises for a week to see which ones office workers could implement in a workday. If the exercises worked for them, they can work for you. Put a little spring in your step with these easy movements: 

• Raise the roof
• Triceps kick
• The Hulk
• Hamstring curl
• Knee lift
• Hallelujah 
• Punching
• Desk pushup
• Side lunge
• Jump Squats
• Chair dips
• Walking 

You can also check out Twist's Pinterest board for some ways to keep moving during March Madness!

Minnesota Nice Spice is a small Minnesota company with a big heart and an unwavering commitment to crafting unique spice blends, sourcing organically-grown herbs and spices and supporting artists with disabilities.

We met this wonderful company last year at the Help A Minnesota Maker (HAMMS) event as they won the MN Maker Award. Since then, they went on to win the Small Business Revolution winning $25K from Deluxe Corporation and are now going to have 6 of their spice blends in the Minnesota Target Stores. We just love Minnesota Nice Spice and are so excited to share their story and samples of their spice with our customers this month as our first spotlight small business.

Debb Masterson, a self-proclaimed spice gypsy, naturalist, world traveler, is the founder of Minnesota Nice Spice. Lucy Johnson, her very special and amazingly talented sister who serves as her spice muse, and together they handcraft their extra nice seasoning blends right here in Minnesota.

At Minnesota Nice Spice, they carefully select certified organic herbs and spices and handcraft 17 blends using their own recipes for unique seasoning blends that emphasize natural health properties, like antioxidants, to add a little spice and lots of flavor to your healthy lifestyle.

The “nice” about their spices doesn’t end with great flavor and great ingredients. In the true spirit of community, they donate profits from each sale to benefit the Interact Center, a one-of-a-kind organization that supports over 125 theater and visual artists with disabilities, including Lucy. Her artwork graces their labels and her creative spirit inspires people every day.

Whether you are purchasing spices for yourself, as a gift or as corporate gifts, they provide you with healthy,
charitable, unique and custom made items that are handcrafted. 

MN Nice Spice  LOVES TO HELP YOU LEAVE A LASTING IMPRESSION.

Nice up your spice or Spice up your nice!  Either way…that’s what they will help you do!
 

 

Twist Office Products is proud to support Minnesota Makers at ​Lowertown Pop.  What is Lowertown Pop you ask?  It is a Minnesota pop-up market; crowd-funding to benefit Face to Face and our Minnesota Makers. Pop in and support the Minnesota Maker movement. The day long event will feature local artisans and craftspeople, brewers, bakers, distillers, artists, and musicians.

MyTalk 107.1’s “Shop Girls” Allison Kaplan and her mother, Harmony, will be streaming “LIVE” from the event from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., and there will be live demos on the main stage throughout the event.  The event will be held in the Waiting Room at Union Depot and will benefit Face to Face, a non-profit organization serving more than 3,300 youth ages 11-24 annually with health care and counseling, and programs for homeless youth. Fifty percent of ticket sales will be donated to Face to Face and 50 percent will be randomly given to one lucky Minnesota Maker and Twist Office Products will award the winning Minnesota Maker a basket full of office supplies.
 
Here are some of the Minnesota Makers Who Will Participate Include:
 
Beeline Honey - Jules Loft - Blue Henn - Leather Works Minnesota - Bodylish - Minnesota Nice Spice -  Bruno Press -  My Little Chickadee Creations - Cravin’ Pie - Muddy Mouth Cards - D8agirl - Scrappy Products - Debbie Wolk Designs - Serendipity Accessories - Duluth Preserving Company
- StormSister Spatique - Eclectic Goat - Superior Switchel -  From Your Mat - Sweet Jules Gifts - Grlk - Tattersall Distilling -  Hagen & Oats - Tumblewalla.