Take a look at your desk. Is it covered in distinct piles of paper work, or is it clear and tidy? If it's the former then you are a piler. The latter then you're a filer, according to Sharon Mann, an organisational expert. Or perhaps a tosser (no insult intended). Mann works for Pendaflex, an office supplies company in the US, which commissioned a survey of 2,000 office workers across the US to determine whether the way people organise their desk is influenced by their personality type. The survey concludes that it does and highlights three basic organisational styles among office workers: the pilers, the filers and the tossers. Pilers are by far the most common, according to the survey, with 48 per cent of people admitting they organise their paperwork into neat piles. Filers, the ones who prefer a clutter-free desk space so file it all out of sight, accounts for 38 per cent of those surveyed, while the remaining 14 per cent are tossers, people who keep their desk clear by throwing everything away. According to Mann, the survey reveals some traits about these types. 'Anxious individuals are likely to be filers,' she says. 'The act of maintaining order in their world - and workspace - is soothing. It helps them feel like they're in control of their environment, and their feelings.' They are most likely to have a tidy home, a bachelor's degree, dream of holidaying on tropical beaches, and head off home to listen to R&B or jazz or enjoy a good swim. 'Pilers on the other hand, don't mind clutter because they have a dependable system of organisation - they can probably tell you which pile any given memo is in at any time,' says Mann. 'Pilers are 'big picture' people, who don't let themselves get lost in details.' According to the survey, professionals - including lawyers, doctors, teachers and accountants - are three times more likely to be pilers than filers. Pilers tend to be intellectuals who tend to have master's or doctorate degrees, it says. They spend their free time watching sport and their dream holiday is a camping trip. The tossers, on the other hand, deal with detail by not dealing with it and getting rid of almost everything - which is not always good. They are social animals who enjoy a good night out with friends and are team leaders, despite being more likely to have left school at an earlier age than the other two types. The survey even claims the choice of pets differs with the three personality types. Filers, it says, are most likely to choose a pet bird, half of the pilers say they prefer the company of man's best friend, while the free-spirited tossers prefer a cat as a companion.