I am always amazed at the number of self-help courses and books that flood the market. The theme seems to be that everyone needs help and self-styled experts are ready and willing to fill that need, for a price. I once lived next door to a “professional organizer” who made a living helping others get their lives and homes in order, all the while herself living in chaos.

I believe that we are each the captain of our own ship and the advice we need to take most seriously is our own, that there is little the “experts” can tell us that we can’t find somewhere inside ourselves. I’m not saying we shouldn’t read or listen, but we should take it with grains of salt and remember that the best expert on you is you.

This applies whether you are dusting the cobwebs from your mind, working to change bad habits or just yearning to have a more organized business, especially if that will free up the very necessary time we all need to carve out for ourselves and our families. Being self-employed can be time-consuming and all-consuming.

There’s nothing like the start of a new year to get the wheels turning with new plans and revisions of old ones. Resolutions abound at this time of year, and many are based on what we didn’t do last year. Look at that as a positive thing, a glass-half-full thing. We learn by doing, by re-doing and by acknowledging what we haven’t done or could accomplish more efficiently if we tried a different way, or just tried harder.

Whether you want more time for digitizing, stitching, marketing or just smelling the roses along the way, organization can make a difference. Taking the time to put the trimming scissors back in place—or tying them to the machine in the first place—can save hours down the road. That’s enough time to take in a movie, make a sales presentation, go for a walk in the evening or, yes, stitch another order of 500 caps.

No matter how you divide them up, there are 24 hours in each day for all of us. Some pray for 48-hour days, while some say the day seems a week long. Bottom line is a day can hold more if you pay attention—same 24 hours, just better organized.

Plan your time with a day calendar, making sure to include the things you have to get done as well as things that need to be accomplished “eventually.” If you divide up the things that are less palatable into manageable bites, they won’t give you indigestion. I call that “eating the elephant” and love to share with readers and students alike that eating any elephant is doable. You just have to do it a bite at a time.

Keeping the records

If bookwork is your least favorite activity, enter receipts and invoices every morning when you are fresh. Few people are blessed with perfect recall, so recording a log of phone calls and appointments, as well as the orders, is a must. Keep a journal next to the phone and make notes of every call that comes in or goes out. When a customer comes by or you go out for an appointment, log it in. Jot down what you buy and what orders are delivered that day. I have been “saved by the book” more times than I can remember. The notes that I make help me recall the details of the day—invaluable when questions are raised about promises made or kept.

The key to good business is the record keeping. The old-fashioned way is the file cabinet; the new-fangled way is the computer. The key to the process is consistency. If you can’t find the order, the invoice, the proof of payment or the job description—from thread color to logo placement—you can’t stitch the job, track the job, collect for the job or repeat the job. Chances are you won’t keep the job long.

Use an order form

The form I use helps keep order in my business. I developed it years ago to organize my own business, and am happy to report that marketing it to others has helped them become better order-takers and more organized as well (learn more at www.helenhart.com).

I was writing things all over the place, and losing the notes—the end result was chaos. In the midst of all this madness was the potential for lost sales, the chance to miss a deadline, order wrong, quote too low. I also didn’t feel I was doing justice to my customers. When they re-ordered, I had to ask all the same questions again and it made me wonder just how important they felt. I devised my form to organize my life and make each customer feel like he is the most important thing in it.

Whatever order form you use, use it. Make the information-flow efficient. More information is better than not enough. Thread colors and placement instructions are easily forgotten. Write information down in an organized way before your thoughts are confused by the next customer’s needs.

Don’t forget to write down the important things your customer tells you—a birthday, a new grandchild, a perfect bowling score, a new branch office. You don’t wait for marketing opportunities in business, you make them. Send a gift—one that reflects your business—and you will find that your business will grow. People love to feel important and be remembered.

More organization

Catalogues can be placed in file drawers or on shelves, by company name or by product category. Keep customer and vendor files that are current within easy reach near the computer and phone.

I have a three-ring notebook that is alphabetized and contains order and payment information for each vendor I use. At the end of the year, I remove the pages, place them in a report holder—the kind that binds them in place—and place the information with my tax papers.

A closet for office supplies helps keep the office area neat. I replenish from this office “store,” keeping clutter to a minimum. Once you have your office organized, take a look at your computer. Do you have a bookkeeping program and do you make your entries faithfully? Do you have your designs filed in folders that are easy to find?

If you digitize, do you have a folder for each customer? If you choose to archive your customers’ designs—for a determined time or forever—burn them on a CD or other back-up media and store them in a safe place. Make sure you back up the important data on your computer often. Label and store these in two different locations, one off-site in case of fire or theft. Do the same thing with your digitizing software and other programs. Computers are replaceable, designs and other intellectual property are not.

Inventory and suppliers

Good records help keep track of inventory. If your suppliers support JIT (just-in-time) ordering, you won’t have much inventory at any time. Often embroiderers order extra garments in case of spoilage, and many shops make it a practice to order two percent over for any order, and charge the customer. If the run is perfect, the extra shirts go into inventory.

Inventory is great for fast work but it ties up money; stocking inventory is a choice each business makes based on the direction and location of the business. But sometimes customers need a gift right now and having an inventory can gain a sale. If you do decide to carry one, stay current with styles. Read your trade magazines, attend trade shows and watch the market at the mall. Work to create an image that is quality but price competitive. Be different.

If you find a supplier you like, stick with it. Shopping around makes you the “new kid on the block” all the time. Establish relationships. And when you do, pay on time or call and explain the problem.

For lack of anything better, store your inventory in the shipping boxes to keep it clean. Label the boxes by manufacturer, style, size and color. Fill a loose-leaf notebook with inventory lists and mark off when one is used.

Decide on how you will treat and track spoilage. Will you donate it, use it for sew-outs? Track your waste. It improves production and discourages stealing. If you have multiple shifts or a large shop, secure the inventory and have employees sign off when removing goods.

Thread, backing and other supplies should also be inventoried. Buy popular and often-used thread colors in cones; buy lesser used colors in spools. Store extra thread in boxes and place a plastic sleeve on the end of the box to keep track; change the number when you remove any cones or spools. Decide on minimums and order before you reach them.

Backing in rolls saves money; pre-cut backing saves time. The time to order special backings, threads and needles is when you have a job that needs them. Keeping stock “just in case” instead of “just in time” ties up money.

Knowing thyself

Keep important numbers in a special notebook for easy reference. My first book Professional Embroidery: Business by Design has a master log sheet in the appendix to help keep track of important information. I enter all my software registration numbers, all my account numbers that the vendors assign, all my passwords, and all my important “business” numbers. When I need to reinstall software, call a vendor or answer a question for an application, it is all right there. I have all the numbers in a duplicate book, which I keep at a family member’s house, along with an extra house and studio key.

My business-license number, loan numbers (with the location of the documents noted), the phone numbers of my lawyers, accountant and insurance agent are in there as well. My federal identification number (EIN), my social-security number, the numbers of my ISP provider (the ones you have to enter to set up your email accounts), any tax identification numbers—I put them all there too.

Using time wisely

Start paying attention to how you work. Make a list of the things you are constantly searching for, then find places for them and keep them there. Draw an outline of the steps you take and the natural direction of your work area. When customers come in, do you have a tidy and inviting place for them to place their orders? When you take those orders where do you put them? When you are ready to hoop them, what is the most convenient place—does it feel natural when you then move to the machine?

After several days you will have an idea where your bottlenecks are—and you can work to ease them. Nothing will destroy the spirit of a man—or woman!—who loves his work more than having to fight to accomplish it.

Once your business is organized, spend one day a week or month fine-tuning your efforts and keeping things ship-shape. A cluttered workspace is as disheartening as a poorly planned embroidery design that hits the hoop, and just as preventable.

Noah started the ark before it began to rain. Get your ship in shape before the deluge of business that your marketing, ideas and talents bring raining down. You will find that once you have a place for everything—and everything in its place—you will greet your days with enthusiasm and end them with a smile. Your customer will benefit, your family will rejoice and your business will prosper.

Hug everyone this month. It’s a new year, a new beginning. Look forward with anticipation and back with a learning and discerning eye. The best is yet to come. Happy New Year!

—HHM