What Cleaning My Garage Taught me About Systems

When it comes to cleaning I don’t really have a “system” – Martha Stewart would in fact be appalled at how much I skip around.

Truthfully, I don’t really enjoy cleaning as much as I enjoy the result, something that most adults can probably relate to. You may not like laundry but appreciate avoiding frostbite in the winter and public nudity charges.

So when I go clean, I tend to bounce around from one task to another until I’m either exhausted or have seen a big enough difference to quit for the day. This past weekend while I was cleaning up my garage, installing door trim, painting, organizing and gathering a big pile for donation, it hit me.

Creating an organized physical space is just as important as a systematized business.

Here are 3 reasons why:

1. Find what you need, when you need it.

One of the things I love about my garage is that if a stranger walked through the door I could easily tell them where to find the paint brushes, the tools, the garden pots. But they could also find them by looking as most things are in boxes with simple labels or evident on a shelf.

Now imagine a business that works the same way. If a new employee needs that password, email template or phone script, they can just click into your Operations Manual and find it easily labeled.

2. Like items are kept together.

As I mentioned, in my garage I have a box full of paintbrushes in various sizes. All of my paint is on a single shelf nearby and labeled by the room I used it in. It’s been a process to figure out but organizing my tools saves me tons of time when doing a project, allowing me to be much more efficient when working and cleaning up.

What about your business? If I walked into your office, could you pull all of your client files from a single location or would they be scattered around? For me, digital clutter is a much bigger mess so I always check how many files are on my desktop and lingering in my downloads folder.

When you keep appropriate things together (which can be anything from contracts to thread & bobbins depending on your business), it’s easier to work and you’ll be more efficient.

3. Organized spaces are much more inviting.

It’s hard to think of a garage being inviting because it’s not my intention to add a lounge and pool table. For me the garage is a workspace, one likely to be covered in sawdust and paint overspray at any given time.

But it’s much easier to work in an environment that is conducive to that work. If I were a fine artist the space would look much different.

And your business space is much the same! If working in your business requires an hour long cleaning spree every morning then how motivated to work are you going to feel? Keeping an organized space is just about having a system for what things you need, where they go and how you use them.

Sometimes we confuse the word ‘system’ with complexity, but I’m here to tell you, my little box labeled “sandpaper” is a system. Following the system I’ve set up means putting sandpaper in the box after I use it. Easy. Done.

Action Step: When it comes to your business or workspace, spend some time this week thinking about the systems you might need.

Questions to ask:
Is my business inviting? Do I want to work or does something else bother me?
How can my business be organized to be user friendly?
Am I keeping like items together or scattered?
What’s the most important thing for me to create a system for this week?