"Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird."
—Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life
by Anne Lamott
If you're a writer, you may recognize this quote from a popular writing book. (If you're a writer and you don't recognize it, you need to stop what you're doing right now and get a copy to read.) The author Anne Lamott is talking about not getting overwhelmed by huge projects.
Here's how she describes the origin of the "bird by bird" phrase:
“Thirty years ago my older brother, who was ten years old at the time,
was trying to get a report written on birds that he'd had three months
to write, which was due the next day. We were out at our family cabin in
Bolinas, and he was at the kitchen table close to tears, surrounded by
binder paper and pencils and unopened books about birds, immobilized by
the hugeness of the task ahead. Then my father sat down beside him put
his arm around my brother's shoulder, and said, "Bird by bird, buddy.
Just take it bird by bird.”
I've been thinking about this because I'm in the middle of a huge design project. I have at least a dozen pieces of jewelry on my table right now in various stages. I usually work on multiple projects at once—it keeps me from getting stuck or bored—but not this many. In order to meet a deadline this month, I've trying to maximize my time and do a little work every day. Unfortunately, I don't have all the beads and findings I need to finish, so my pile of unfinished jewelry projects keeps growing. It's been a little overwhelming, so I finally resorted to the "boxes and bags" system that I used last year when preparing for a craft show.
Boxes and Bags
First, I set out some small kraft jewelry boxes. (Ziploc bags work, too, but I prefer the boxes for fragile items.) Then, I put whatever materials I have for a certain necklace or bracelet into the box and a note about what I still needed to buy or what I was waiting for the mail carrier to deliver. For some I also included a tiny design sketch. Now I can see at a glance that this bracelet's finished except for a clasp or I still need some red ceramic rounds to finish those earrings. When I sit down to work, I can pick one of the boxes and start without wasting time figuring out what still needs to be done.
Online Order Annotations
I also printed my receipts for my online bead orders and annotated them so I knew exactly which beads I needed for which project and can quickly sort them into the right boxes when they arrive. (It's amazing how quickly I can forget that crucial information when the beads arrive one or two weeks later.)
Craft Show Displays
I know crafters who use their displays as a way to judge their progress. That is, they place completed items on their display so they can easily see if they have enough products (and the right variety) to fill up the display and replace any sold items. This works well for me even when preparing jewelry to send to galleries where they'll do the display themselves. I can quickly see that I need to make more bracelets or I don't have enough variety in the types of necklaces I'm making. It also ensures that you stay with a certain "look" or theme and that everything looks cohesive when placed together.
Detailed To Do List or Spreadsheets
This is how I keep on track with my Etsy shop, which is a huge project all by itself. I list specific items and what is needed for each one: description, keywords (tags), pricing, photographs, promotion. Using "draft" mode for listings, I can add photos to several listings one day and all the keywords another. Sometimes during especially busy periods I break my list down even further with specific types of photos needed (such as a photo of a necklace shown on a neck form). It seems like you'd be able to remember which earrings need new ear wires before you take photos or which bracelet needs to be weighed so you can figure out the postage costs, but that's not always the case!
What tips do you have for organizing big projects?
Quotation source: Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott.