It’s the end of the year and that means it’s time to start thinking about New Year’s resolutions, self-improvement, and organizing your life. Running a small business you can accumulate a lot of “stuff” that you need to regularly take stock of and assess. I, as Brian always likes to say, am like water as I tend to fill my container. In other words, I will accumulate a lot of… stuff. Stuff, in this case, means tools, materials, and finished products.
The sprawl
When I start working I often need a lot of different tools and materials. Every piece needs to be sanded, burned, painted, and sealed. That means sanders, sandpaper, tips, paints, brushes, polyurethane, and a plethora more. The way I work is to simply start pulling things out and using them. My creative nature means I need to focus on what I am working on and not the space surrounding me. Eventually, however, you run into a limitation: workable space.
The other cause for sprawl in your work area is all the stuff you collect. Of course, there are tools and raw materials, but then there are also all the other accouterments. All the little bits and bobs left over from projects: scrap wood, portions of fabric, ribbon, everything that you don’t want to throw away because it can be used in a future project.
A method to the madness
So how do you solve this? You need to organize your space in a way that makes sense to you. Some of the things that I do to stay organized:
- Find a logical grouping for things: For some people that is alphabetical, others may prefer by color. You have to figure out what that means for you. For me, I like to keep all the materials that are for a particular project together. I have a space for all my resin, wood blanks, papercrafts, etc
- Keep the most frequently used things close at hand: I am often grabbing for the things I need for the project I am working on. Most of the storage in my workspace is on wheels so I can arrange the things that I am going to need to be close at hand so I don’t have to run around looking for things every step of the way.
- Cleaning up is key: This may seem obvious but it is often easy to just jump right into the next project without cleaning up from the prior. Having everything neatly put away clears up your workspace for your next project and also ensures that the next time you need those materials they are exactly where you expect them to be.
- Safety First: Don’t forget to keep clear paths to get around your workspace. This should always be a priority.
I hope you all have a wonderful holiday and a great new year. If you have ideas on how to organize your space please share them @bz_furfur and, as always, stay unique.
