Real Talk: Secrets to Increasing Productivity

Hi friends, I hope this post finds you well! It's been a hot minute, hasn't it? We have thankfully been busy bees, back-to-back, all day, every day... Oh, you get the point. During my journey, I have discovered some new findings and I've returned to share them with you!

At Shawna Yamamoto Event Design, as a team, we do our best to allocate our time and efforts to produce the greatest result for each project. Here are some methods we have found useful to raise our productivity level.

1. GET ORGANIZED

In order to stay inspired and have the momentum going; we prefer to stay organized. The key here is to be able to find what you are looking for, losing sight of what you need during production will slow you and the team down.

2. LABEL EVERYTHING

Labeling everything helps my team stay organized. By labeling everything from the supplies in our warehouse to the iPhone chargers in the Conference room, we prevent time lost searching for supplies or locating a phone charger. This may seem fairly simple, but label makers are no joke when it comes to efficiency. 

3. PLAN AHEAD

Planning ahead is a staple practice here at the office. Planning projects ahead of time allows us to produce more refined work. Many of our designers start their planning process by gathering inspiration for a mood board. Outlines, mood boards, and Schedule Planners are your best friend. 

4. COMMUNICATION

As with most things, communication is key.  Working with a variety of vendors, clients, and employees, we have to stay in constant communication. Our team works to ensure everyone is on the same page and working towards the overall goal. Without communication, a team can fall apart. 

5. TIME YOUR WORK

An important part of being a designer is knowing your own efficiency. I recommend you time yourself throughout each step of a project in order to learn where you spend the majority of the time. By understanding how you work, it'll be easier to make time estimations for projects and will help you provide reasonable expectations for any client.