A recent Forbes article claims that the pictures, mementos and even the junk piled in a corner of your office or cube tell others a lot about you.  According to Samuel D. Gosling, a professor of psychology at the University of Texas, Austin, and author of The Secret Language of Stuff (Basic Books), some items are intended to show or build status. Others are simply expressions of values or personality traits, with no effort to establish status.

So what does your specific office or cubicle décor say, exactly?  Well, apparently, an office filled with plants suggests that the occupant is trying to create a pleasant work environment. It may also suggest that the occupant is happy with the job and plans to stay with the company for the foreseeable future. Displaying university memorabilia from an Ivy League school, on the other hand, may create an image of exclusivity.

Personally, I think the most obvious statement your office or cube can make about you relates to how organized (or disorganized) it is. I know a lot of people who believe that having a cyclone of a desk makes them look like they are so busy they just can’t keep up with the work raining down on them.  That may be true, but it can also tell colleagues that you’re overwhelmed, or worse, borderline incompetent.  Just something to keep in mind, for the most successful employees create a persona of neatness and efficiency.