CHECK YOUR DRAWERS
Scot Nery’s Boobietrap (returning this year) became the #1 show in LA, toured the west coast, won awards, worked with over 700 performers, and happened every wednesday no matter what for nearly 300 performances. Here’s how I stayed organized (ish).
YOUR MIND OR YOUR CAREER
A friend of mine has skipped responding to multiple emails just because he can’t easily find a working resume.
If you’re ADD and bipolar with chronic anxiety like me, you’ll probably want to have some fun! Ever missed a callback because you couldn’t find the right headshot? Lost a networking opportunity because their business card disappeared into the void?
If you’re not like me, you probably still realize the awesomeness of getting decluttered. There are lots of tools i’ve set up to deal with my cluttered lists, files, objects, and thoughts. Gives me the freedom to have fun and to *notice* that i’m having fun.
I GOT HELP
I’m learning a lot about how to organize things and keep up with many of my stuffs. The thing that has helped me the most is THE PLOP. David Allen introduced me to good todo lists; Ethan Schoonover to folder management. Both had a place to put weird stuff immediately.
The thing i learned is to have homes for everything including a home for the homeless things. That temporary shelter is what I call “plop.” Thought you might get inspiration from my categories of things to keep organized.
HOMES
1️⃣ FAST: things I need access to regularly
Physical: my performance costume
Digital: current project files
Mental: today’s priorities
2️⃣ SLOW: things I want to keep but rarely need
Physical: juggling props that i only use for special gigs
Digital: past demo reels I’ve archived
Mental: my dream project ideas
3️⃣ COMMUTE: things that are moving around
Physical: my goodwill donation bag
Digital: files I need to upload
Mental: partial messages for collaborators
4️⃣ PLOP: stuff that doesn’t have a home yet
Physical: Amazon packages I just got
Digital: random screenshots I took
Mental: “should I call that director?”
5️⃣ LIBERATE: trash, recycle, curb, email archive
FIND THE GOOD IN LIFE
Plop is crucial because it gets stuff out of my head and out of my line of sight so i can stay focussed. This means having an apple note on my phone called plop. That’s where i put tasks, thoughts, partial notes etc. I have a folder on my computer called plop. That’s where I put downloads and email attachments i’ll need to file or delete later. I have several spaces in my house / garage for plopping stuff immediately so they’re out of my way.
The final step of #ploplife is to clean up regularly. 80% of plopped things can probably be liberated, so I go thru it every once in a while (sometimes daily, sometimes much less often). Tasks that seemed urgent at 2am like “eat that banana” are easy to delete a week later when the banana is very mooosh.
It feels good when my plop is clear. Cleaning it up is the difference between plop and a junk drawer. Junk drawers are a permanent home for junk.
APLOPALYPSE NOW
step 1: put a bunch of stuff that’s out of place in one place. eg: clear off a desk and put all of the stuff in a box.
step 2: put on your todo list “clear plop”
step 3: when you get around to it, take things out of the plop, make a todo list item of them (eg: “repair my hat”) , put them in their home, make a new home for them.
YOU’RE NORMAL FOR A WEIRDO
I got tired of my friends not having websites because they had to organize their files. When i make a website for someone, I just take all the organizing off their hands for them. That’s what makes my process so fast. I have my dude scrape the internet for everything about a customer. I don’t wait for them to find their resume or photos.
When I’m someone’s action partner, usually the first thing we need to do is get organized. it’s a relief for me to know that nearly everyone is a mess in some way.
Having a clear head and being able to access my resources is a game changer for me. It’s taken me around the world. It’s made me the person people call first when they’re looking for interesting performers. It’s given me energy and engagement with my family.
PS: Oh, i’m also paralysingly obsessive and a recovering perfectionist!