As an activity professional, you will deal with clutter. Now, whether it becomes a mess will be up to you. At certain times of the year, you will acquire the overflow of decorations and other projects. Planning your space for organization and becoming a creature of habit will help you to get and stay organized.
Take a quick survey of your office and storage to see the number of supplies that you are working with and to figure out a timeline.
Gather some cleaning supplies to have on hand to clean out the containers, desk, and shelving.
Sort by theme (holiday, month, or use), when beginning the huge task of going through your supplies. What I have found when starting in a new position, is that I will find St. Patrick’s décor in with Christmas and Easter. Give each holiday their own separate sorting pile. This process may take several days. Sometimes it is good to get some temporary large boxes to place like items together. Overall, it is best to store items not in boxes, but plastic storage containers. Organize smaller items into plastic zip bags to contain but allow visibility.
Write down generalized items for an inventory. Example, St. Patrick’s Day wreath, green clover cut outs (36) …etc. You always think that you will remember what you have, but the truth is that you will only remember some of it.
Throw away any items that are past their prime. This allows you to have some control over the clutter.
Clean up the supplies by removing any tape or staples that have been left on items.
Gather all items that you will use often. If you use something several times per week, make sure to place the item in a prominent place in your office space. Perhaps you use a trivia book every Tuesday and Friday. Make sure that this book is always returned to the same spot after use.
Have smaller containers available to house like items together. A good example would be art supplies, such as paint brushes, small bottles of acrylic paint, markers, colored pencils, scissors, tape, glue sticks, glue bottles…etc.
Make sure to go through all storage locations in your community to get a true inventory. Ask other department managers if they are aware of any other decorations that are being stored in other areas.
Label items or perhaps the shelves. Also, making a diagraph to show what holiday, event, month, or season is stored in which location. This helps you to stay accountable in keeping things organized.
If there is more than one person in the department then make sure that everyone buys into the idea of returning all items to their assigned locations. Just as at your home, daily and weekly cleaning may be necessary to keep things organized.
Happy organizing!
