There are so many ways to interpret the word creativity. What you think is creative may not seem very creative to someone else. Technically, the definition tells us that creativity is all about using original ideas in artistic work. We agree, and we would also add that creativity for us is also about challenging ourselves to think in new ways. However, it’s hard to think in new ways if all our thoughts are fuddled in trying to remember what to do, when, and why! We know that in order to be creative, we need to ensure that we’re organized so we have room for the creativity creature inside of our minds. So how do we stay on top of our work without falling asleep at the wheel when it comes to those “less-fun” tasks? Here are our top tips for staying organized so your creativity can exit the sidelines and show up as the star of the game!
First and foremost we love our One Books. If you don’t know about the One Book, you need to! It is a journal, a planner, a goalkeeper, a sketchbook, and a habit-building tool all in one, and it was conceptualized by a wonderful local, Kristen Edmiston! We love this because it keeps us organized and actually encourages creativity within its pages. It really helps us take a look at all our work from the little to the large things, and we’re thrilled to be bringing this amazing tool with us into 2023.
We also love to stay organized with a good old fashioned notebook. Don’t knock the classics! We love to use different coloured pens to jot down notes during client meetings, write out a to-do list for the day, and sometimes even do a little doodling during those spin-your-chair-around-in-a-circle moments we all experience throughout the day.
Technology, technology, technology. Sometimes we’re a fan, sometimes it's our foe. But we admit there are some really great tools out there to keep us on top of our game and ensure that our entire team is in the loop on all the things we’re up to! We use Asana as a team and we find it an exceptional tool for distributing tasks and keeping client projects organized so nothing, not even the tiniest detail, slips through the cracks.
We also are fans of the Google suite (sans storage issues, grr). We use our calendars to send and accept meeting invitations, to set reminders of time sensitive tasks, and to remember who is doing what and when, and who needs to send what to who (did you catch all that?) Lastly, we keep ourselves organized with shared documents in our Google Drive. We don’t keep things on our desktop, and keep ourselves accountable to each other by keeping our stuff in a place where we can all view each other's tasks so we know what we’re each working on.
Finally, we care about the little tools we use to stay organized, and we choose items and colours that function both to keep our things organized and stimulate our brains. From cute pen holders to colourful sticky notes, and stickers to
keep tabs (literally) on our One Book, we ensure that we like what we see when we choose our organizational tools! Plus, our office is in The Creative Hive and well, if you know, you know.
So there you have it! We love these tools to keep us organized and to make even the most mundane tasks a bit more fun so that we have brain space to think creatively about our events, designs, and purpose and engagement strategies!
Does organization help boost your creativity too?